Stevie Wilkerson: Slain Utah woman's mum said she'd been abducted and would be killed days before body was found

Vawna Wilkerson even named the kidnappers as 'a man calling himself Joey and a woman calling herself Jose'

PUBLISHED SEP 1, 2020

Stevie Shay Wilkerson (St George [Utah] Police Department)

IRON COUNTY, UTAH: A mother of a missing woman had warned about her daughter’s abduction days before her body was found. Stevie Shay Wilkerson was found murdered on August 23, two weeks later she vanished.

According to reports, the 26-year-old victim was last seen on August 9 while leaving a motel named Claridge Inn on South Bluff Street in St George. On August 10, her mother, Vawna Wilkerson, took to Facebook to issue a plea for help in finding her daughter. In the social media message, the mother wrote: “HELP MY DAUGHTER "STEVIE SHAY WILKERSON" HAS BEEN ABDUCTED TAKEN AGAINST HER OWN WILL BEING HELD HOSTAGE BY A MAN CALLING HIMSELF JOEY AND A WOMAN CALLING HERSELF JOSE THIS COUPLE SHE ACCIDENTALLY CROSSED PATHS WITH BEGAN AT THE RED ROOF INN MOTEL OFF OF BLUFF STREET IN ST GEORGE UTAH THEY WAS DRIVING A WHITE 2018 COLORADO.
SHE HAS BEEN MISSING SINCE SUNDAY, AUGUST 9TH @ 2PM. PLEASE HELP ME FIND MY BEAUTIFUL BABY GIRL... THEY ARE ARMED AND HAVE THREATENED TO KILL HER.”

However, on August 23, police found the body of Stevie in a remote area of western Iron County. The body “had been in the area for some time”, the Iron County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. The Sheriff’s Office also said that the case has been treated as a homicide, but no further details have been released. Also, no arrests have been made yet and police have asked for help, saying if anyone has any information related to Stevie’s disappearance or murder, they can call the Iron County Sheriff’s Office at 435-867-7500.

After the tragic discovery, Stevie’s cousin, Angie Golish, told the Deseret News that the young woman was an animal lover and everyone found her having “a big heart, not a mean bone in her body. She was just sweet and a little shy.” “My aunt said it feels extra tragic that she would die this way because she was truly a person who wouldn’t hurt anyone or anything. She was so kindhearted and loved all animals, big and small. She dreamed of being a veterinarian growing up,” Golish added.

In another incident, an Arkansas woman was found dead after she went missing while jogging. Sydney Sutherland’s remains were found in Newport on August 21 after a three-day search operation, police said. Sutherland disappeared after going for a jog on August 19. A suspect arrested in her murder was identified as Quake Lewellyn, a 28-year-old farmer, who was "familiar" with her. The 28-year-old accused was also the winner of the 2016 Jackson County Farm Family of the Year award.

In a statement, the victim’s boyfriend Alex's parents said that Lewellyn has apparently confessed to the crime. "They have arrested the person that has committed this horrible crime. He has admitted doing this. Also pray for his family as they have to face what has happened," Alex's mother Cathy Hood wrote on social media.

Lewellyn is reportedly a Tuckerman High School graduate and in 2016, when he won Jackson County Farm Family of the Year along with his father, Michael, and grandfather, Donald, he told ArkansasOnline.com: "I’ve always worked on the farm. I began driving a yellow Ford, … hauling seed for dad. We all have our own farms, but we help each other out."