By Meladi Brewer

DailyAdvocate.com

GREENVILLE — The state wrapped up witnesses on day four of Ashlee Fletcher trial. Judge Travis L. Fliehman presided.

“I think he (the victim) took off. I don’t know what’s going on. He just had court and jail and stuff,” Fletcher said.

Sgt. Joseph “Joe” Monnin interviewed Fletcher at her residence on the evening of Aug. 19 regarding the case of Corey Flemming who was a missing person at the date of the interview. Fletcher advised officers she had heard through her husband that the victim had been living at her best friend’s and Dean Baker’s residence.

Sgt. Monnin accompanied by Detective Morissa Reed who could be heard in the audio clip of the interview that was brought in as evidence, inquired about how could someone who said they are at the Baker residence two to three times a week not know about the victim staying in the garage from the Bakers themselves but had to hear about it via her husband who lives in a different town.

Fletcher advised officers that she had been getting over an illness, and they could have told her but did not remember. She also could be heard telling the officers that she never really saw the victim at the Baker residence before questions regarding the carpet cleaner she borrowed were brought up.

Fletcher said she borrowed the shampooer on Aug. 14 to clean up SpaghettiOs that had spilled on her living room floor. When asked if she took the shampooer anywhere, Fletcher responded with she could have but doesn’t remember.

Sgt. Monnin asked Fletcher, “What if we told you that we have videos of you leading it into the car,” and she said, “I might have, but I don’t know.” He questioned how she could not remember where she took the shampooer five days back, and Defense Attorney David Rohrer brought up the fact he does not remember what he had for breakfast two days ago. Pointing out that people forget information all the time; so it cannot be held over someone’s head.

“Something as familiar to someone as eating breakfast is common for them to not remember is habitual – they do it every day,” Sgt. Monnin said. “The likelihood they remember that is rare, and something such as taking a shampooer to clean up blood is pretty distinctive.”

Det. Monnin told Fletcher he did not believe she was being completely truthful to them and advised her of the possible consequences that could come about if she were to get caught. He testified to seeing the living room carpet that Fletcher said was cleaned at the Baker residence.

“It didn’t look like it (the carpet) had been cleaned from the top. It was dirty, it didn’t have any cleaning lines or Bissell marks,” Monnin said.

He advised the court that not only was the allegedly cleaned carpet dirty, but it did not have a lot of stepping room, as the couch and coffee table took up a majority of the space. On Aug. 20 between 3-4 p.m., officers searched Fletcher’s residence and found totes similar to those found at Baker’s grandmother’s residence, white rope and black gloves found at the work site and in the totes, and box with the victim’s backpack hidden two feet back under Fletcher’s house.

On Aug. 24, Fletcher and Baker were arrested in Florida. While searching Fletcher’s phone, text messages and audio messages were saved into evidence for the case. Fletcher’s sister-in-law is the rightful owner of Fletcher’s orange KIA, and her messages were read aloud.

“Ashlee you can’t run from whatever is happening. You’re going to ruin your life and lose your kids. Please do what you know is right, and give me my car. I’m not going to be involved in any of this.”

Various family and friend tried to reach Fletcher letting her know they love her and want her safe. They advised her she could face what is going on, and they would have her back along the way. Fletcher was begged to go to the police and turn herself in.

“There ain’t no fixing this one. I’m not going back. I don’t want ya to get into trouble. I got my phone, but I can’t turn it on right now because I’d have….it’s done a certain way. I’m turning it off today, and it’s not turning back on. I don’t want anybody else to get into trouble for this. I’m sorry. You don’t know how badly this is killing me,” Fletcher said via a Whatsapp audio message.

Surveillance video from Fletcher’s house and the spot the victim had been found timestamps correlated with the times two subjects were seen together, traveled, and reappeared on site again. However, the video at the spot the victim had been is difficult to determine who the subjects are.

Monnin pointed out a surveillance tape where Fletcher returned the shampooer to her neighbor. Though reasoning as to why could not be confidently determined, Fletcher could be seen wiping the bottom part of the cleaner off as she approached the residence where it was testified she said she hoped she got it cleaned up enough.

Rohrer had a chance to cross examine the witness, and it was determined that since Baker frequented Fletcher’s residence, it would not surprise the Sergeant that items typically found at Baker’s place of employment would have been found at the house including rope, mice bait, and gloves. Sgt. Monnin agreed that it would not surprise him. At the end of the cross, Sgt. Monnin also admitted the videos did not show who put the box containing the victim’s things under the house.

DetectiveRachael Prickett advised the court of her findings through the investigation including 20 page letters Baker and Fletcher would send to each other. In one letter Fletcher wrote she talked about the victim and tried to speculate her husband could have been behind the murder and stashing of evidence.

She also advised Baker he is not the violent type and told him they were being set up. In the letter she advised “it’s all too easy to get rid of us at the same time.” In a letter dated Sept. 16, Fletcher wrote to Baker about “that night.”

“I’ve been having nightmares of that night in the yard that you said what you said that dropped me to the ground. I’ve had nightmares since them. I’ve fought for us that night,” Fletcher wrote.

In the letters, Fletcher even wrote about framing Baker’s wife for the murder saying “framing that b***h is in my plans LOL. I love it baby. I really do. Make me smile and cry happy tears.”

It was testified that the time of the the two figures could be seen at the burial site, Baker’s wife had been at work every time, so she was able to provide an alibi. While talking about the BCI investigated evidence, Rohrer pointed out that Fletcher only had three of 29 pieces come back positively for her involvement: the cigarette, the shoe print photos, and the physical shoe prints themselves, and he asked Det. Prickett if there was more evidence for Baker than Fletcher.

It was determined that out of 29 pieces of BCI evidence, five were DNA standards, some came back inconclusive, three matches came back positive for Fletcher, and when State Prosecutor Deborah Quigley asked how many came back positive for Baker, Det. Pricket said one word. “Three.”

Watch www.dailyadvocate.com for daily updates on the trial or read reports from past days.

To contact Daily Advocate Reporter Meladi Brewer, email [email protected].