Police: Family ‘devastated’ by removal of items from Brittanee Drexel memorial

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — The removal of items from a memorial for Brittanee Drexel in Myrtle Beach has “devastated” the family, according to Myrtle Beach police.

The police department asked people not to “neaten” up around the memorial in the city’s Grand Park for the Chili teen who was murdered in 2009. She had vanished during a spring break trip to Myrtle Beach. Last year, Raymond Moody pleaded guilty to Brittanee’s murder.

“Someone recently removed mementos and other items that were placed at the marker in Brittanee’s memory. Whoever did it apparently thought they were ‘“’cleaning up,’”’ but the removal of these items has devastated the Drexel family. If you still have the items, please return them to the park! The Myrtle Beach Police Department is working to formalize the memorial. In the meanwhile, do not disturb items which are part of the family’s memory of and mourning for Brittanee,” the department posted on Facebook.