In a grim discovery on Sunday afternoon, the Shelby County Sheriff's Office confirmed that deputies located the body of an adult woman in a wooded expanse behind the back fence of a residence in southeast Shelby County. As reported by Action News 5, the authorities were conducting a welfare check at a home on Peppermill Lane around 5:15 pm when they stumbled upon the unsettling scene.
A person of interest has been detained in connection with the incident, which has shaken the quiet neighborhood. As described in a neighbor's account to WREG, the community was left jarred Saturday night after noticing and smelling smoke at around 10:40 pm — initially thinking innocently of a late-night barbeque, an assumption now marred by tragedy.
Further intensifying the local unease, one neighbor confided to WREG that the son, dealing with mental health issues and with a past marred by jail time, is alleged to be responsible for his mother's death. The neighbor, who recounted the grisly scene of a family friend discovering the body, expressed disbelief that their generally peaceful street was now the backdrop for such horror. "I’m really disheartened to have to walk out of your house and see all of this. Because it’s relatively, you know, a quiet street," they said.
The community's sentiment was echoed in a statement by Dominic Richards, a resident, to FOX13 Memphis, saying, “It could have been my mother, sister, brother whoever you know what I’ m saying because it’s kind of messed up right now. I’m sorry to hear that for her family."
