Angela Deskins, the first victim to be identified in the Cleveland murders, was missing since June and her family had been frantically searching for her.
Deskins was found–along with two other women in different locations–wrapped in plastic and abandoned in a Cleveland neighborhood. Extreme decomposition made it difficult for authorities to identify the bodies at first, but they eventually matched her fingerprints to some in their database. Another victim has several tattoos which investigators are hoping will aid them.
The alleged killer, 35-year old Michael Madison, was a known drug-dealer; Deskins reportedly had an arrest for possession of marijuana. She was also homeless, which made initial searches for her even more difficult when her family realized she was missing. She was last seen during the first week of June, but wasn’t reported missing until earlier this month.
Deskins’ brother, Jermaine Padgette, posted her picture as his profile photo and asked Facebook to help spread the word about her disappearance earlier this month in a heartbreaking plea.
“We tryed two look for my sister this morning as nd no luck. Keep your eyes and ears open ps fb,” he wrote this past Saturday. On Sunday, he wrote, “I miss my sister so much I’m hurt help me”.
East Cleveland police and several volunteers are going door-to-door in the neighborhood where the victims were found in the hopes of finding someone who might have information about one of the victims or–because police say they expect to find more–any other missing person in the area. One of the victims had several tattoos that might be used to identify her: a tattoo at the base of the left thumb of a red star with lines coming out of it; lips on the base of the left forearm underneath the name “Gene”; a purple and green flower tattoo on the left thigh, also underneath the name “Gene”; and the name of the rapper Lil Wayne on the left breast.
Madison–a registered sex offender–is being held on $6 million bond under charges of three counts of aggravated murder and three counts of kidnapping.
Friends and family are mourning the cruel loss of Angela, who was well-liked in her community. She attended Cuyahoga County Community College, enjoyed basketball, and had varied taste in music, from Usher and MC Lyte to country singer Reba McEntire.
