The Disappearance & Murder of Tamika Huston

Tamika Huston vanished from Spartanburg, South Carolina during May of 2004. It is believed that Tamika was last seen by her loved ones on or around May 27th, 2004. Due to the fact that she lived alone, it took several days for her family members to realize she was missing. After weeks passed without any contact from Tamika, her aunt reported her missing on June 14th, 2004. 

Spartanburg Police went to Tamika's house after she was reported missing. They reportedly found no signs of a struggle at the home, but they found Tamika's dog with a litter of puppies alone at the residence - and it appeared they had been left alone for quite some time. Police also found Tamika's cell phone, wallet, and uncashed paychecks inside her home. While there otherwise was no outward sign of foul play on the scene, it began to seem more and more likely that something bad had happened to Tamika. 

Six days after Tamika was reported missing, police found her car on the opposite side of town. A set of keys were found inside the car, but the keys did not match the car or Tamika's apartment. Investigators eventually matched the key to the apartment of Christopher Hampton. 

There was initially no clear affiliation between Tamika and Christopher Hampton. However, a friend of Tamika's told investigators that Tamika had recently begun dating a man named Chris prior to her disappearance. The relationship was barely a month old at the time, which is why Tamika's friend was not aware of the man's last name.

The relationship was also not believed to be too serious at that point, as Tamika's family members did not know that she was seeing anybody. Still, investigators did not think it was a coincidence that the tenant of this apartment had the same first name as person Tamika had been seeing before she vanished. Investigators immediately began to look for Hamptom so they could question him.

When investigators were finally able to locate Hamptom, they learned he was already in prison for a parole violation. After questioning him, investigators secured a warrant on his apartment. Inside, they found bloodstains on the carpet. DNA testing eventually confirmed that the blood belonged to Tamika. 

Still, Christopher told investigators that the bloodstains were tabasco sauce and ketchup. Investigators continued to build a case against him as he remained behind bars. In August 2005, the day he was released from prison, Christopher was arrested and charged with Tamika's murder. 

Christopher eventually led investigators to Tamika's body, which he had buried in a wooded area near Tyger River Drive. Despite this, Christopher pleaded not guilty to murder charges. Just minutes before his 2006 trial, though, Christopher ultimately ended up pleading guilty.

Then, it was finally revealed that on May 27th, 2004, Tamika and Christopher got into an argument inside Christopher's apartment. Christopher angrily threw a hot iron at Tamika, causing her to collapse and fall over. Christopher made no attempt to help Tamika; he instead went to a friend's house to drink beer before going to a store to buy cleaning supplies. He later buried Tamika's body in the woods.

Christopher was sentenced to life in prison and remains behind bars. 

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Sources:
ABC News
The Criminal Journal
Go Upstate