A Georgia family is grieving after the gruesome discovery of a pregnant 19-year-old’s body was found buried near her home after she was reported missing earlier this month.
After the remains of Téa Choates were recovered on Tuesday in Lithonia near Atlanta, her fiancé Aldeyshaun Locklear, 18, was arrested and charged Wednesday with her murder, PEOPLE reports.
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Locklear reportedly confessed to the crime, saying he strangled the expecting mother after an argument escalated. He allegedly told police he buried her body in the woods.
Locklear faces charges of felony murder, aggravated assault related to strangulation, and concealing a death, the outlet reports. He has not been given bond and remains jailed.
Ebony King, the victim’s mother, told the AJC that her daughter was in an abusive relationship and she urged her to leave Locklear months earlier.
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“She loved him,” King told the paper. “She wanted to stay, no matter what I would say to her. She really just wanted the family.”
“Téa’s biggest thing was she would say, ‘I could change him, I can help him,’” King said. “That’s how her heart was built … but you can’t love a person hard enough to change.”
The day before her daughter’s body was recovered King posted a heartfelt message asking for him in locating her beloved daughter.
“It is with a very heavy heart that I ask for your help in locating my daughter Téa Bayonne Choates. She has been missing since Tuesday 8/6 and was last seen in the Lithonia GA area. She is one of my heartbeats and I am praying that you can help to spread the word. The last person to see her was her fiancé Aldeyshaun Locklear. According to him, she had on a white polo shirt t-shirt with a pink polo symbol on it, colorful shorts, and “slides”. She has a tattoo on her shoulder blade area that says “No weapon formed against me shall prosper” and others on her arms. She does not have her cell phone and her last message to me from his phone was on 8/6 at 10:19 pm. If you have seen or heard anything PLEASE contact Investigator Winston with the Dekalb County SVU at 770-724-7715.”
The family has set up a GoFundMe campaign to assist with funeral costs.
