The search for a missing Gastonia woman came to a tragic close after her body was discovered in Fairfield County, South Carolina.
Detectives with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s Homicide Unit have obtained first-degree murder warrants against Charles William Combs in relation to the death of LaPorscha Baldwin.
Baldwin was reported missing in Gastonia by family members on October 10. Her abandoned car was found on I-85 south between the Sam Wilson Road exit and Belmont.
The City of Gastonia Police Department began investigating her disappearance. Detectives found that Baldwin was last seen in Mecklenburg County.
CMPD’s Missing Persons Unit began assisting the Gastonia Police Department with the missing person investigation. The CMPD Homicide unit began investigating the homicide of Baldwin on Oct. 13.
The next day, CMPD Homicide Detectives collaborated with the Gastonia Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office located Baldwin deceased in Fairfield County, S.C.
Combs was arrested in Myrtle Beach, S.C., by the Myrtle Beach Police Department in collaboration with SLED Agents and CMPD Violent Crimes Apprehension Team on Oct. 16.
CMPD Homicide Detectives traveled to Myrtle Beach and interviewed Combs. At the conclusion of the interview, he will be transferred to the custody of the J. Reuben Long Detention Center in Horry County, S.C., and will await extradition to Mecklenburg County.
Baldwin’s family has set up a GoFundMe (https://gofund.me/7bd3d038) to benefit her daughter and cover funeral expenses.
The investigation into this case is active and ongoing. As additional information develops, it will be released by the CMPD’s Public Affairs Office.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call 704-432-TIPS and speak directly to a Homicide Unit detective. Detective Barnett is the lead detective assigned to this case.
The public can also leave information anonymously by contacting Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600 or charlottecrimestoppers.com.
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