RAYMOND Moody’s girlfriend says she’s standing by him – even though they were together when he ‘raped and killed’ 17-year-old Brittanee Drexel.
The teenager’s remains were discovered last week at a remote location, more than 13 years after she vanished in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina during spring break with her friends.
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Authorities revealed they had arrested 62-year-old Raymond Moody, at his home in Georgetown County and he was charged with rape, murder, and kidnapping.
Moody confessed to the crime and led police to her remains, according to deputies, but is yet to put in a formal plea.
In a shocking twist, the suspect appears to have been living a double life, as he has a long-term partner of “almost 15 years”, Angel Vause, 54, who lives at their shared home.
Asked if she’s still supporting him, she exclusively told The Sun: “Well, of course I will.”
Through tears she went on: “I’m shocked, I’m stunned, but I don’t really know that side of him. I know the person he was with me. He was fantastic to me.”
Moody allegedly caused Brittanee’s death by manual strangulation on or about April 25, 2009, although her full cause of death is yet to be revealed.
He also allegedly sexually battered the teen on the same night, according to the warrants.
Moody has long been a suspect in the case and he told a reporter from News13 back in 2011 he had nothing to do with her disappearance.
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Asked why she stood by him despite the investigation, his partner Angel said: “I mean, they never had anything, dropped everything, let it go.
“So nothing came of it again until a week or two before he was arrested.”
Asked if she’s concerned people will think she knew of the murder, she insisted she was well-known in the local area and friends and family support her story.
Despite not splitting from Moody, Angel, who works as a nurse, said she is heartbroken for Brittanee’s family, revealing: “I lost a child who was 16 years old, he was in a car wreck.
“I’m devastated for the family. I’m so sorry. But like I said, I didn’t know that part of him.
“I would’ve described him as a kind, gentle man who give you the shirt off his back. He loved.”
Information from the National Sex Offender Registry revealed that Moody had been serving a sentence for rape, kidnapping, lewd or lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14 and sodomy while in California.
Moody was convicted in December 1983 and released on parole in 2004.
He failed to register as a sex offender in 2009 and was convicted in 2010, according to the SLED criminal background check.
In 2008, he was also arrested for indecent exposure.
MOODY’S DARK PAST
Asked about his time in prison, Angel insisted: “I didn’t know any of that when I first met him. I met him later on.
“I found out through someone else who knew him, the whole story, he had told me part. We had already been involved for a few years.”
But she says she still decided to stay with him as he was a different man in their relationship, declining to comment further on his past or Britannee’s murder.
“This is truly a mother’s worst nightmare. I am mourning my beautiful daughter today, as I have for the last 13 years,” Brittanee’s mom Dawn Pleckan said after the news was announced.
“We are much closer to the peace that I have been hoping for.”
Brittanee, originally from New York, was last seen on April 25, 2009 and CCTV footage captured the moment she left the Blue Water Resort.
Her last text was to her boyfriend, who was back in New York. He responded to the message.
But, she failed to reply and 10 minutes later her partner called Brittanee’s mom who reported the case to the police.
A pair of sunglasses similar to ones belonging to Brittanee was found but the accessory couldn’t be linked to the teen.
Jimmy Richardson, the 15th Circuit Solicitor, said: “We continuously have people tell us certain things about the case. Sometimes there’s nothing to it. Sometimes, it’s the holy grail.”
The case seemed to go cold until 2016 until the recent breakthrough.
Moody is being held at the Georgetown County Detention Center without bail.
A date has not yet been set for his next court appearance.
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