Note left in Walmart bathroom helps cops find woman being held captive, PA officials say
A woman’s notes she left in public bathrooms helped officers track down and arrest the man holding her captive, Pennsylvania police say.
One of the notes written by the woman was stuck to a mirror inside a bathroom at a Walmart in Carnegie, Pennsylvania on July 8, according to a criminal complaint. She identified herself in the note and said she was being “sexually assaulted, physically assaulted and is being held against her will by Corey Brewer,” police said.
She also gave Brewer’s address in neighboring Pittsburgh and vehicle description in the note, advising that he had a knife, according to police. A Walmart employee alerted police in Scott Township of the note.
Police went to the address in the note, but no one answered. Officers heard furniture being moved toward the front door and they observed video cameras, police said in the complaint. Officers were unable to make contact with anyone at the residence and left.
The following day officers called a number they had on file for Brewer, 38, and when he answered, police asked if they could speak to the woman. She said on the call that Brewer is her boyfriend but he would not let her speak to the officer privately.
On July 10, another note was left by the woman in a public bathroom. Employees at Fallingwater museum found the note, which stated she had been held captive since May 1. The museum, in Mills Run, Pennsylvania, is about 75 miles from the Walmart where the previous note was left.
“It states that she heard the police knocking at the residence, that the abuse hadn’t stopped, and please don’t give up,” police said. “The note states, ‘If I don’t make it, tell my family I love them.’ It also states that she is scared and that the last messages sent from her phone sent to her family were not sent by her.”
The woman’s ex-boyfriend told police they have two children together but that he had not heard from her since April, according to the criminal complaint. He said he was aware Brewer was abusive toward her.
Police executed a search warrant July 11, arresting Brewer and ensuring the woman’s safety. She told police in detail about the abuse allegedly inflicted by Brewer over the previous two months.
Alleged abuse included punching, strangling her with a phone charger cord and neck chain as well as sexual abuse, police said She also said Brewer cut her with a knife, officers said. Health officials found noticeable bruising attributed to the assaults as they examined the woman, according to police.
“(The woman) stated that she was terrified to leave because Brewer had told her that he would kill her and that he would kill her children if she tried to leave,” police said.
Brewer is charged with rape, strangulation, sexual assault, terroristic threatening and unlawful restraint, court records show.
Scott Township is in western Pennsylvania about 10 miles southwest of Pittsburgh.
This story was originally published July 13, 2021 at 9:36 AM with the headline "Note left in Walmart bathroom helps cops find woman being held captive, PA officials say."