Ashley Elkins update: Murder charges expected Friday based on DNA evidence
Ashley Elkins search continues in Macomb County
Law enforcement in Macomb County are continuing the search for the remains of Ashley Elkins after four days of digging through a landfill.
ROSEVILLE, Mich. (FOX 2) - Authorities in Macomb County have confirmed to FOX 2 that charges are expected to be filed on Friday against the ex-boyfriend of Ashley Elkins based on DNA evidence that was found.
FOX 2's Jessica Dupnack learned from sources in Macomb County that the murder charges against De'Andre Booker are expected to be filed on Friday. These will be in addition to the lying to police charges that Booker was already charged with.
The sources said the charges will be filed based on DNA evidence.
Elkins, 30, disappeared on Jan. 2 after texting her family that she was running errands. Her family immediately believed Booker was involved in her disappearance and believed he killed her.
Sources did not confirm where the DNA evidence was obtained.
Police searched Booker's apartment and seized a dumpster there to process for evidence. Roseville Police and other law enforcement spent more than a week searching through the landfill for her remains but never returned with her body.
Booker will be in court for the arraignment on murder charges at 10 a.m. on Friday. Macomb County officials will hold a press conference immediately after the arraignment.
What happened to Ashley Elkins?
What we know:
Ashley Elkins was last heard from on Jan. 2 as she ran errands. She messaged her family members that she was heading back from a beauty supply store. No one has heard from her in more than a week, something that is out of character for her.
"She loves her family, her kids. She would never just disappear for this many days," her sister Alexis Elkins said.
Her family then started searching for her before police got involved earlier this month.
Those family members have been suspicious of her ex-boyfriend since she disappeared. According to her family, her phone last pinged near her ex's Roseville apartment.
On Tuesday, police found her car in the area of 13 Mile and Little Mack in Roseville, less than four miles away from the apartment. That same night, her ex's apartment was searched. He was arrested the next day.
What evidence has been found in the Ashley Elkins case?
Police have canvassed several area businesses for video and utilized digital forensics to help determine where Elkins could be.
Police also said they seized a trash dumpster from the apartments as part of the investigation.
Ashley Elkins' ex-boyfriend charged in connection with disappearance
De'Andre Booker, the ex-boyfriend of Ashley Elkins, has been charged with lying to police a week after she disappeared. Booker is accused of lying about his location when asked about the missing mother of two.
What we don't know:
Police have not released any other details about evidence.
FOX 2 sources also did not say where the DNA evidence that was linked to Elkins was found.
Her body or remains have never been found.
A suspect is charged in Ashley Elkins' case
Last week, De'Andre Booker was arrested and charged with lying to police in the case.
Booker, 32, allegedly fled to Flint, where he searched for the fastest routes to Ohio. He's accused of planning to leave the state and the prosecutor said last week that his research also included what to do while on the run, as well as how to beat a polygraph test, and if blood is traceable.
Additionally, he allegedly looked up how to delete his Google search history.
The prosecution argued that these searches suggest that Booker would flee if released on bond. His bond was set at $250,000 cash/surety on Thursday.
Why was De'Andre Booker arrested?
Elkins' family had been suspicious of Booker since she disappeared on Jan. 2 and her phone last pinged at the apartment.
Police were in contact with Booker after Elkins was reported missing and his apartment near Gratiot and Frazho was searched just a few days after she disappeared. That same day, Elkins' vehicle was found abandoned about two miles away.
During that search, police took a dumpster away as evidence.
"There is substantial evidence collected at the ex-boyfriend's home, which leads us to believe that Ashley was murdered," Elkins' family said in a statement.
On Wednesday, Booker was arrested in Flint.
He allegedly lied to police about his location and about Elkins' vehicle. Authorities said video evidence confirmed that he lied.
The Source: FOX 2's Jessica Dupnack spoke with sources in Macomb County for confirmed information in this story.