Missing Goddess Update: Arrest Made in McPhatter Disappearance

Charlotte Mecklenburg Police confirm an arrest in the case of Nikki McPhatter, the Charlotte US Airways employee who disappeared more than three weeks ago.

They also say a body was discovered just north of Columbia which is believed to be that of McPhatter, who was reported missing on May 11th.

In a statement Friday night summarizing the case, Charlotte Mecklenburg Police say that their involvement began on May 11, 2009, when Nikki McPhatter was reported missing to CMPD, with the case being assigned to the department's Missing Persons Unit.

During the course of the investigation, information was developed indicating that foul play may have been involved in McPhatter's disappearance. As a result, CMPD Homicide detectives took the lead in the investigation on May 20, 2009, nine days after McPhatter's reported disappearance.

The statement says CMPD dedicated significant investigative resources that led detectives to Columbia, South Carolina. At that point, CMPD Homicide unit began a joint investigation with the Richland County Sheriff's Office in Columbia.

The CMPD statement Friday night notes that over the course of the past week, detectives developed information that identified Theodore Roosevelt Manning IV, identified as "Teddy," as being responsible for the death of Nikki McPhatter.

The investigation led detectives to the location of McPhatter's 2003 Black Honda Accord, and also to a body which CMPD investigators believe is that of Ms. Mcphatter in Fairfield County, South Carolina, just north of Richland County.

Soon afterwards, the Richland County Sheriff's Department obtained an arrest warrant for 29-year-old Theodore Roosevelt Manning IV. The Richland County Sheriff's Department arrested Manning at 7:04 p.m. Friday evening at his residence, 8047 Bluff Road, in Gadsden, S.C., which is in Richland County.

The statement offered no information about the cause of death. Wachovia Bank video from Columbia within the past several weeks showed an unidentified individual trying to use McPhatter's ATM card to obtain cash, suggesting robbery as a possible motive. Police have not yet confirmed the suspected motive.

Charlotte Mecklenburg Police concluded their statement by offering its thanks to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg and Richland County communities for the many tips and leads that they received in the course of the investigation.

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Missing Goddess Update: Nikki McPhatter

Police look for man named 'Teddy'
Authorities in N.C. and S.C. believe man has information about Charlotte woman missing since May 6.

By Christopher D. Kirkpatrickckirkpatrick@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Friday, May. 22, 2009

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police ask that anyone with information in the case, or anyone spotting McPhatter's vehicle, call 704-336-6034.

With just a first name to guide them, investigators in two states were trying to locate a man named “Teddy” who they believe might have information about US Airways employee Nikki McPhatter's disappearance.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police were in Columbia on Thursday looking for the man, but wouldn't say what his connection with McPhatter might have been.

“I know she was supposed to have been heading this way,” Columbia police Capt. Thomas Dodson said of her disappearance. “They're trying to locate a Teddy.”

The 30-year-old Charlotte woman was last heard from on May 6 when she called a friend and said she had run out of gas in Columbia.

Investigators are still trying to identify two men captured on bank video May 6 as they tried unsuccessfully to use McPhatter's ATM card at a S.C. Wachovia branch.
And they were also asking anyone who has seen her car, which has the N.C. license tag “PHATTAH,” to contact police.

Fran Eddings, a co-worker who set up a Facebook page for McPhatter's friends and family to support each other, said people have spotted the car at various locations in the Charlotte area, including Eastland Mall and Graham Street in Charlotte. One report placed the car on I-40 between exits 119 and 125 in the Hickory area.

Eddings said people started calling her with tips about the case after she put her phone number online. She said she would prefer tipsters call police directly.

McPhatter was last seen at work on May 4. She works at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport at the international terminal ticket counter. She hasn't been heard from since calling a friend two days later from Columbia and saying she needed money because had run out of gas. The friend told police that McPhatter didn't answer her phone a short time later.

Between 6:45 and 7 p.m. that day, a camera at the Wachovia bank branch on Farrow Road in Columbia caught two men on video.

McPhatter missed several days of work, which is uncharacteristic, and failed to meet a friend in Georgia on May 6.

Latoya McPhatter, who lives in Raleigh, said she was supposed to meet her sister on May 8, but she didn't show up.

Various friends and co-workers tried to reach McPhatter and stopped by her home in northwest Charlotte.

Akilah Weaver, a concerned friend, filed a missing persons report on May 11.
She did so after receiving a call from McPhatter's employer who said she had missed several days of work. She tried to call her friend and also drove by her house off N.C. 16 near I-485.
“She never misses work. I saw that as a red flag. If there is any word that describes her, it is responsible.”

She said Nikki McPhatter, originally from Raeford, still cares for her grandmother. She drives to Raeford once or twice a month to see her. McPhatter has a business degree from UNC Charlotte.
Weaver described her friend as “very outgoing, very friendly. As soon as you met her, you felt a connection. She never said anything negative. She had a very positive energy.”

“There has been a lot of confusion and worry…,” Weaver said. “We want her to come home.”

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Missing Goddess: Nikki McPhatter

I used to work with Nikki at Dillard's in 2006 where we were both seasonal employees. We kept in touch for about 8 months after Dillard's. When I heard that she was missing this morning, I was beyond shocked! Authorities think she was headed to Columbia, SC to pick up some personal belongings (possibly from an ex). She and her car, it seems, have vanished without a trace.



Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department
601 East Trade Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202
Missing Person Media Request
Date: May 15, 2009

Name: Nikki Mcphatter
Race: Black Gender: Female
Height: 5’05’ Weight: 150 pounds
DOB: 9-28-78 NIC Number: M068099266
Age: 30 Eyes: Brown Hair: Black
Date of Last Contact: 5-4-09
Last Known Location: 8618 Rozumny Dr. Charlotte NC

Complaint Number: 20090511-213600

Additional Information:
Nikki’s friends and family have not seen or heard from her since May 4, 2009. Nikki works for US Airways as a ticket agent at the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport. Nikki has missed several shifts of work. Nikki is described as a reliable employee.

Nikki’s vehicle is also missing, and both are entered into NCIC as missing.

Vehicle Information: Black, 2003, Honda Accord with NC tag PHATTAH.

Nikki is reported missing from Charlotte North Carolina, and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is asking for the assistance of citizens of the Columbia SC area with this missing person case.
Anyone who sees Nikki or her black Honda Accord is asked to call 911 or Crime Stoppers at (704) 334-1600