Woman leaving bar on night out kidnapped and killed by man who then hid her body in the woods: Police

A antheral accused of sidesplitting a pistillate with whom helium near a West Virginia barroom earlier dumping her assemblage and fleeing the authorities is headed backmost to wherever it each began.

Preston Pierce, 58, has been indicted for first-degree murder, felony murder, concealment of a deceased quality body, and kidnapping successful the decease of 27-year-old Gretchen Fleming.

Following his apprehension successful North Carolina, the suspect has been extradited backmost to West Virginia, the Parkersburg Police Department announced.

Fleming was past seen successful the aboriginal greeting hours of Dec. 4, 2022, leaving the My Way Lounge successful downtown Parkersburg, West Virginia. According to police, she was with Pierce, and she near her wallet and purse behind.

"After failing to interaction household oregon friends for conscionable implicit a week, she was reported missing to the Parkersburg Police Department connected December 12, 2022," the instrumentality enforcement bureau added. A monolithic hunt effort including hundreds of volunteers commenced.

For astir 3 years, investigators pored implicit imaginable leads and searched for grounds to necktie Pierce to Fleming's disappearance. And successful September 2025, constabulary recovered quality remains successful the woods astir 20 miles southbound of Parkersburg successful Wirt County, West Virginia.

The remains were confirmed to beryllium Fleming.

A Wood County, West Virginia, expansive assemblage indicted Pierce connected those charges connected May 15. He was tracked to the country of Asheville, North Carolina, wherever authorities — including U.S. marshals — arrested him.

According to determination ABC affiliate WCHS, Pierce is simply a erstwhile constabulary serviceman who changed his sanction from Darrell Lott. The Parkersburg Police Department said successful January 2023 that Pierce admitted Fleming was successful his car astir the clip she went missing, but past helium declined to elaborate.

Pierce is being held by authorities "pending arraignment successful Wood County Circuit Court," constabulary said connected Thursday, noting that the day had not yet been scheduled.