RUTHERFORD CO., NC (WSPA) – Deputies in Rutherford County have charged a man they say broke into a church and left a woman’s body.
According to the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called to the Golden Church of the Brethren on Cane Creek Mountain Road in Bostic on November 28 after a woman’s body was found inside the church.
Investigators said were unable to identify the woman through fingerprints or facial recognition.
After releasing pictures of the woman’s tattoos, family members were able to identify her as Jessica Renee Blackwell on November 29.
The sheriff’s office said investigators received information on November 30 of a possible suspect who may have placed her body in the church. Investigators said interviewed the suspect Monday and searched his home.
44-year-old Jonathan Andrew Weeks of Rutherfordton is charged with Breaking and Entering a Place of Worship and Conceal/Fail to Report Death.
Weeks is being held in the Rutherford County Detention Center on $10,000 bond.
Blackwell’s cause of death has not yet been determined pending toxicology results and an autopsy.