New details are emerging in connection with a teen girl found dead inside a Chicago apartment, allegedly at the hands of a man she had been dating.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Chicago police arrested Joshua Williams Saturday and charged him with murder, in connection with the death of 15-year-old Amarise Parker. He’s facing an additional charge of being a fugitive from justice.
Parker was found deceased last Tuesday in the 7200 block of South Phillips Avenue in the South Shore area. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed her identity and an autopsy indicated that she had been strangled.
According to a proffer obtained by Law&Crime, Parker left home and for months, had been staying with Williams. On December 10, she visited one of Williams’ neighbors and asked to use the phone. Parker then contacted her mother, asking to be picked up. When Parker’s mother went to Williams’ residence, she couldn’t locate her daughter.
On December 11, Parker called her mother again and asked to be picked up at Williams’ home. This time, she left with her mother and later disclosed that Williams “would not let her leave” and that she “escaped when he thought that she was in the restroom.”
Parker’s mother said she then left home to pick up her other daughter from school, but when she returned, Parker was not there. The proffer stated that Parker went back to Williams’ home and the following day, on December 12, neighbors heard arguing coming from his apartment.
Prosecutors said Wiliams contacted a cousin, who then contacted 911 after Parker was “left foaming at the mouth,” following the argument. An autopsy would later reveal that her windpipe had been crushed.
“Paramedics arrived and found (Parker) lying in an open closet with a blanket covering all but her head. Paramedics found a necklace lodged in (Parker’s) throat,” the proffer stated. “(Parker’s) neck was red and cut. (Parker) also had cut/scratches on the right side of her face leading down her neck.”
“In addition, (Williams’) Google search history included 50 searches related to: strangulation, the victim by name, the death penalty, murder, how to explain an asphyxiation death, the penalty for murder and overdosing on medication, texts, various ‘inculpatory’ web searches, and PDF downloads.”
Police subsequently arrested Williams and charged him with murder. He also had a warrant for his arrest out of Colorado for an assault and strangulation incident.
“She was a lovely soul. Everybody loved her. Although she had been missing, but she didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve this,” Parker’s mother, Yahanna Clark, said, according to CBS News.
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Parker attended school at CICS Loomis Longwood High School, 1309 W. She was a sophomore at the time of her death.
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[Feature Photo: Amarise Parker/Handout]
