Post by hi224 on Feb 17, 2023 15:15:54 GMT
Susana Morales was a 16 year old young lady from Norcross, about 25 minutes north of Atlanta, Georgia. On July 26th 2022 she texted her mom at about 9:40pm that she was walking to her home on Windscape Village Lane from a friend's house a short distance away. She would never make it home.
Local law enforcement, the Gwinnett County Police Department, didn't take her missing person report seriously at first. They assumed she was a runaway. Her mother, Maria, and several family members resorted to spreading awareness through pleading for shares of her information on Facebook. This is how I first learned of her disappearance. Her mom and those close to her insisted she wouldn't just run away, especially after texting that she was on her way home. Her family shared details such as her fitness tracker watch recording a significant increase in heart rate within a block or so of her home before tracking in a different direction.
With little help from law enforcement and English speaking news outlets, the family gathered on intersections near where she disappeared with home made signs and banners with her pictures and info. Being an area heavily populated by Latin residents, a few Spanish speaking local news stations picked up her story. Finally, a few of our major news outlets offered their time to run short snippets and included a few new details.. her cellphone indicated that she was walking home between 10:07 and 10:21 when they believe she got into a car. A few moments later, her cellphone indicated she was off of Steve Reynolds Blvd, a location further north into Gwinnett County. Her phone continued to ping in the area until it was either switched off or the battery died.
Her family continued to share her info on social media regularly, but news coverage continued to be limited.
On February 6th 2023 police received a call of remains spotted in the woods in Dacula, a town about 20 minutes away from Norcross. The remains were off of hwy 316 and Drowning Creek Rd, very close to the border of the neighboring county. The body was IDed through DNA and dental to be that of Susana Morales.
Local perspective. I live in Norcross now, and am familiar with the area she disappeared from. I wouldn't call it the prettiest side of town. Lots of older neighborhoods, a bit of industrial, a fair share of mediocre at best apartments, lots of shabby strip malls. I wouldn't make a habit of of walking regularly late at night, but I wouldn't necessarily feel unsafe doing so from time to time. There are a lot of pedestrians in the area walking to the markets very early and late. We have a lot of petty theft and drug crimes but not typically violent.
I grew up in Dacula, where she was found. The specific area has been one of the few patches that hasn't been developed over the years, there's a few intertwining dirt roads that go deep into creepy woods and all you'll see is posted : no trespassing signs and a few piles of trash people dump. The woods have always had a heavy feeling to me, and I've often swore they'd find Justin Gaines in there somewhere, but it seems like Susana ended up there instead.
So what do you think happened to her? Was she kidnapped? Did she get into a car with someone she knew? Was she hit by a car where the driver possibly freaked out and disposed off a body? Did she die the night she disappeared? And what if Gwinnett police had taken her case more seriously, would she have had a chance?
Rest in peace, beautiful girl. Personally, I've thought of you often, and I believe the police failed you.
www.fox5atlanta.com/news/body-found-in-gwinnett-county-identified-as-missing-16-year-old
Edited for update: Doraville police officer arrested in connection with the death of Morales
www.fox5atlanta.com/news/susana-morales-doraville-officer-accused-death
Doraville is in neighboring Dekalb County. It is slightly south of Norcross, so Dekalb is not the county right outside of where she found.
Local law enforcement, the Gwinnett County Police Department, didn't take her missing person report seriously at first. They assumed she was a runaway. Her mother, Maria, and several family members resorted to spreading awareness through pleading for shares of her information on Facebook. This is how I first learned of her disappearance. Her mom and those close to her insisted she wouldn't just run away, especially after texting that she was on her way home. Her family shared details such as her fitness tracker watch recording a significant increase in heart rate within a block or so of her home before tracking in a different direction.
With little help from law enforcement and English speaking news outlets, the family gathered on intersections near where she disappeared with home made signs and banners with her pictures and info. Being an area heavily populated by Latin residents, a few Spanish speaking local news stations picked up her story. Finally, a few of our major news outlets offered their time to run short snippets and included a few new details.. her cellphone indicated that she was walking home between 10:07 and 10:21 when they believe she got into a car. A few moments later, her cellphone indicated she was off of Steve Reynolds Blvd, a location further north into Gwinnett County. Her phone continued to ping in the area until it was either switched off or the battery died.
Her family continued to share her info on social media regularly, but news coverage continued to be limited.
On February 6th 2023 police received a call of remains spotted in the woods in Dacula, a town about 20 minutes away from Norcross. The remains were off of hwy 316 and Drowning Creek Rd, very close to the border of the neighboring county. The body was IDed through DNA and dental to be that of Susana Morales.
Local perspective. I live in Norcross now, and am familiar with the area she disappeared from. I wouldn't call it the prettiest side of town. Lots of older neighborhoods, a bit of industrial, a fair share of mediocre at best apartments, lots of shabby strip malls. I wouldn't make a habit of of walking regularly late at night, but I wouldn't necessarily feel unsafe doing so from time to time. There are a lot of pedestrians in the area walking to the markets very early and late. We have a lot of petty theft and drug crimes but not typically violent.
I grew up in Dacula, where she was found. The specific area has been one of the few patches that hasn't been developed over the years, there's a few intertwining dirt roads that go deep into creepy woods and all you'll see is posted : no trespassing signs and a few piles of trash people dump. The woods have always had a heavy feeling to me, and I've often swore they'd find Justin Gaines in there somewhere, but it seems like Susana ended up there instead.
So what do you think happened to her? Was she kidnapped? Did she get into a car with someone she knew? Was she hit by a car where the driver possibly freaked out and disposed off a body? Did she die the night she disappeared? And what if Gwinnett police had taken her case more seriously, would she have had a chance?
Rest in peace, beautiful girl. Personally, I've thought of you often, and I believe the police failed you.
www.fox5atlanta.com/news/body-found-in-gwinnett-county-identified-as-missing-16-year-old
Edited for update: Doraville police officer arrested in connection with the death of Morales
www.fox5atlanta.com/news/susana-morales-doraville-officer-accused-death
Doraville is in neighboring Dekalb County. It is slightly south of Norcross, so Dekalb is not the county right outside of where she found.