2 days ago
‘Speak up:' Myrtle Beach woman dies four days before planned departure from abusive relationship
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) –News13 investigates the death of a Myrtle Beach woman as the four-year anniversary of her death approaches.
The coroner's office ruled Angela Roberts' death undetermined but after digging into the case, her family believes there's more to the story. Myrtle Beach Police have also since re-opened the case.
In 2021, Angela Roberts, 28, was just four days away from leaving her boyfriend of almost 10 years before she died.
Her family says they wish they got to her sooner because they say the most dangerous time for a woman in an abusive relationship is when she's trying to leave.
'I thought, 'oh I'm going there in a few days, it will be fine.' And I never expected it to be this,' Bethany Colley, Robert's first cousin said.
Roberts lived in Myrtle Beach with her boyfriend Kody Gaines. She loved animals and always wanted to be a mother. But after a failed pregnancy, her cousins Sherry Jimenez and Bethany Colley say the couple's relationship took a turn.
'We had gone out with just the three of us,' Jimenez said. 'He was fine, you know seemed cool about it. And then I just remember her receiving, like, a lot of phone calls. Where are you? Where are you? Why aren't you back yet? Wanting to know what her location was.'
'Then we were all talking and she said, you know, shh you got to be quiet, like, be careful what you say, because he has video cameras up and he can hear like what we're saying,' Colley said.
Colley says the morning of July 20, 2021, Roberts had packed her bags ready to leave and live with Colley.
Instead, she got a call and was told her cousin had been shot. Colley says she booked a flight and when she got to the hospital Roberts was only being kept alive by a machine.
'And there was a very small amount of activity, you know, so even as devastated as we were, I had some kind of little hope, maybe,' Colley said.
Colley says later that night, Roberts' boyfriend Gaines told her family Roberts followed him around their home with a gun and eventually he pinned her on the ground face down after she pointed it at him.
'He told us that he walked away and then she stood up and shot herself and her body went stiff, and she fell over,' Colley said. 'But he told the police something different. He told the police that he was asking her where the other gun was and he looked away and then heard a shot and she had shot herself.'
Police reports Colley provided to News13 state Gaines had nearly a pound of marijuana, $23,000 in money, digital scales and plastic bags in his possession at the time of her death.
One report states he had been arrested that same day for drugs.
Another report states an unnamed man in the home was acting frantically, his left hand was covered in blood and he washed his hands before anyone could stop him.
It goes on to state Gaines claimed Roberts' paranoia started the week before and says he told police quote, 'I didn't know what I was about to do.'
It also mentions he was making crying sounds, but police did not see any tears or redness from his eyes.
One report states police responded to their home for a possible suicide. In 2022, the coroner's office ruled her death undetermined.
'None of it,' Colley said. 'None of the story lines up. It just doesn't.'
After Roberts' death, her family says they spoke to her friends and requested police reports which revealed something deeper they weren't aware of.
Colley says he broke down doors, grabbed Roberts by the hair, tracked her whereabouts, had cameras in their home and had access to her bank and social media accounts.
Colley provided bank statements to News13 and says nearly two weeks after her death, Gaines transferred $5600 from Roberts' account to his.
'I don't know, it painted a very scary picture in our minds of what kind of life she was in the middle of with him,' Colley said.
Colley and Jimenez say they're grateful police are putting new eyes on her case. They say they're hopeful Roberts' story can help someone in a similar situation get out before it's too late.
'Speak up, be brave,' Jimenez said. 'You know, people love you and care about you. And if we would have known sooner, maybe we could have done something.'
News13 reached out to Gaines via email and his social media for comment but never received a response. He also blocked a reporter on social media.
So far, no arrests have been made in Roberts' death. News13 asked MBPD if the case was closed as a suicide or otherwise.
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Adrianna Lawrence is a multimedia journalist at News13. Adrianna is originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and joined the News13 team in June 2023 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in May 2023. Keep up with Adrianna on Instagram, Facebook, and X, formerly Twitter. You can also read more of her work here.
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