Police have identified the body found near Clover last week as that of a 17-year-old girl from Gastonia, N.C.
The body, found Thursday on Robinson Road, has been identified as that of Heather Marie Catterton, York County Sheriff's Office Capt. Jerry Hoffman said Monday. The cause of death has not been released, pending final autopsy results.
Police Friday released photos of clothing found on and around Catterton's body in an effort to identify her. A family member from Clover notified police that the body might be Catterton, Hoffman said. She had not been reported missing.
Authorities confirmed Catterton's identity using fingerprints.
Police would not say whether she died on Robinson Road. However, they said the body was probably there more than 24 hours but less than 72 hours before it was discovered.
“We haven't determined if she was killed where the body was found,” Hoffman said. “… Part of the reason we need to speak to anyone who has any information to piece together these questions.”
York County sheriff's deputies are investigating the case as a homicide.
The body was found off a dirt road that connects with Crowders Creek Road in Gaston County, Hoffman said. She was found between two large culvert pipes – not in the water or inside the pipes.
Police are asking for more information about Catterton, whose last known address is 2402 South York Road in Gastonia. She lived with her father, but was not living there all the time, Hoffman said. She was not in school.
“Now we're reaching out to the public for anyone who can tell us the whereabouts of Heather between Oct. 18 and 28,” Hoffman said. “We want any information about her, period. Friends. People she came in contact with. Places she would frequent…”
Investigators also are looking for information on two suspicious vehicles. One was a red, Ford F-150 pickup with tinted windows and a flat liner bed cover. It was seen in the area of Robinson Road between noon and 1 p.m. Oct. 27.
The second vehicle is a two-tone Chevy S-10 pickup with a blue top and tan bottom, possibly a 1987 to 1990 model. It was seen in the Robinson Road area on Oct. 25 or Oct. 26 between 9 and 10 p.m.
About five houses are located on the mile and a half dirt road where the body was found. A woman who lives along the road told The Herald's news partner, WSOC-TV, that her neighbor spotted the body while out riding his four-wheeler and called police.
Catterton was wearing only socks, a sweatshirt and a necklace when officers found her body, Hoffman said. The other clothing items were found about a mile and a half away, over the South Crowder's Creek Bridge on Crowder's Creek Road. Investigators are also interested in any suspicious activity seen in that area.
Police would not comment on whether she was a victim of sexual assault.
Catterton was released from jail Oct. 8, North Carolina Department of Corrections records show. She has been charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and identity theft, background checks show. Some of those charges were still pending at the time of her death.
She does not have a criminal record in York County, Hoffman said.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact the York County Sheriff's Office at 803-628-3059, or CrimeStoppers at 877-409-4321.
Kimberly Dick — 803-329-4082
@Nyx.CommentBody@