Man charged after woman's body found in burning car | Crime

CATAWBA COUNTY, NC (WBTV)- CATAWBA, NC (WBTV) Investigators in Catawba County are investigating reports that a woman's body was found inside a burning vehicle on Thursday afternoon.

Brianne Mary Ginty, 22, was identified by the Catawba County Sheriff's Office Friday morning.

According to the sheriff, there was a report of a car fire along Hopewell Church Road in southeastern Catawba County on Thursday around noon.

Jermaine Wilkes, 32, was arrested and charged with murder, burning personal property and destroying remains to conceal unnatural death, the sheriff said. 

Part of his charges are from Zahra's Law, signed into law by Gov. Bev Perdue in 2011. The law made it a crime in North Carolina to dismember and distribute human remains.

The murder occurred at 6838 Hudson Chapel Road in the town of Catawba when the two got into an argument which escalated into murder, Sheriff Coy Reid.

When investigators arrived at the scene, they found Ginty's body inside the car.

On Friday, friends stopped by the house to place flowers on the doorstep. Co-worker Nathan Mulholland says, "This is something you always figure happens to someone else and I don't know if it has still hit me yet."

"She was the type person who had her own trends..she never followed anybody and she worked harder than anybody I knew in my life...we have to hold on to the good parts so we don't get lost in such a tragedy," Friend Brittney Dailey said.

Police won't say how Ginty was killed but a search warrant shows a butcher knife and blood was found at the home. Sheriff Reid says two 911 hang up calls were made the night of the murder.

Neighbor Carla Smith says she heard nothing out of the ordinary the night investigators say Ginty was killed. She says Ginty moved into the home next door right after Christmas. Friends tell WBTV that Ginty was from Massachusetts and moved to North Carolina in high school.

Copyright 2012 WBTV. All rights reserved.