Police are trying to piece together what happened to a 31-year-old mother whose remains were found burning on the side of a South Fulton road one day after she was reported missing in Atlanta.
An incident report released by Atlanta police revealed new details about Brittany Wicklein’s disappearance, including a statement from one of the last people to see her alive saying that someone commanded her to get into a car with them before she vanished.
Friends and family say they lost touch with Wicklein early Thursday morning, one day before her charred remains were found. Police have released few details about the homicide investigation, leaving a slew of questions.
According to the initial missing person report, a friend told police Wicklein was last seen in the area of Simpson Plaza in the 700 block of Joseph E. Boone Boulevard in Atlanta about 1 a.m.
The friend told officers he and Wicklein were walking home from a store when a black car reversed on the street and stopped near them, according to a police report obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
When Wicklein walked up to the car, someone inside started screaming at her to get in, the friend told police. The woman complied and the car drove off, the friend said.
Surveillance footage from the area confirmed Wicklein got into the car before it pulled away, according to Atlanta police. It is not clear who was behind the wheel.
Wicklein was not officially reported missing by her friend until about 4 p.m., approximately 15 hours after she was seen getting into the black vehicle.
Her friend said when he tried to call her that afternoon, a man answered her phone, according to the police report. The man reportedly told the friend that Wicklein had been involved in an incident that left his mother’s home damaged by gunfire. The man demanded $100,000 and hung up.
Atlanta police then began circulating Wicklein’s photo asking for the public’s help to locate her. Her body was found early the next morning.
“Approximately 12 hours after police were contacted and approximately 27 hours after she was said to have entered the black vehicle, Ms. Wicklein’s body was found in the City of South Fulton,” Atlanta police said.
Firefighters in South Fulton responded to a call about a grass fire on the side of Jones Road near Ga. 42. They arrived about 4:30 a.m. and doused the flames, only to find the woman’s body, according to city spokesman Gary Leftwich. The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed Wicklein’s identity Monday.
South Fulton police believe the woman was killed somewhere in the city of Atlanta’s jurisdiction before her body was set on fire Friday morning.
Police have not specified if Wicklein is believed to have been involved in a shooting that resulted in home damage.
She was wanted on three counts of aggravated battery in connection with a June 17, 2020, incident in Southern View, Illinois, according to Sangamon County court records. The details of that incident are not clear. The AJC has reached out to police for more details.
Wicklein is survived by two children, her mother and her brother, her family said on a GoFundMe page. They are trying to raise money to take Wicklein’s body back to Indiana, according to the page. The campaign had raised more than $8,000 as of Tuesday.
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