DeAndre Booker, the ex-boyfriend of Ashley Elkins, has been formally charged with premeditated murder and evidence tampering following the disappearance of the 30-year-old hairstylist and mother of two.
Elkins, who went missing from her Warren, Michigan, home on January 2, had been last seen leaving to run errands, and her family has been searching for her ever since.
Booker, initially arrested on January 8 for lying to authorities during their investigation, now faces more serious charges, including dismembering and mutilating a corpse and concealing a death.
Despite the charges, Elkins’ body has yet to be found.
According to authorities, Elkins visited Booker’s home on the day she disappeared, where investigators allege she was killed before her body was disposed of.
During a search of Booker’s home in Roseville, police recovered evidence suggesting that Elkins met a “crime of violence” at the location.
The investigation intensified as Roseville police launched a search of a landfill in mid-January, but it has so far not yielded significant findings.
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Elkins’ disappearance sparked a wave of support from her friends and family, who organized both online and physical searches.
A GoFundMe page raised over $13,000 to help support Elkins’ two young sons, aged 7 and 10, who are grappling with the absence of their mother in different ways.
Her 7-year-old son, who is on the autism spectrum, still asks daily where his mom is, while her 10-year-old son has been having nightmares.
Last weekend, a vigil was held in her honor, with loved ones lighting up the sky with candles and balloons.
The family has expressed hope that the charges against Booker will lead them closer to justice, though they acknowledge that the process is just beginning.
“This alone won’t provide closure,” said Elkins’ uncle, Maurice Morton, in a statement. “But it will begin our journey to justice.”
