Florida: Estranged husband faces murder charges as missing woman's body discovered in storage unit
Dec 03, 2023
Florida [US], December 3 : In a tragic turn of events, the estranged husband of Shakeira Yvonne Rucker, a 37-year-old mother of four, has been charged with her murder after her body was found in a storage unit in Orange County, Florida, CNN reported, citing the police.
Rucker was reported missing by her family, who informed the Winter Springs Police Department that they last saw her on November 11. The family mentioned that Rucker had left her home for "an unknown destination," possibly with her estranged husband, Cory Hill, at the time.
Last month, Florida law enforcement officials escalated the case to a homicide investigation after discovering Rucker's body in a storage unit registered to Hill. Prosecutors formally filed charges against Hill for the murder of Shakeira Rucker, who had been reported missing just days earlier, according to CNN.
"The Office of the State Attorney for the Ninth Judicial Circuit has formally filed charges against Cory Hill for the murder of Shakeira Rucker," stated prosecutors in a release on Friday. They added, "Hill remains in jail under a no bond status stemming from his November arrest of Attempted Second Degree Murder and other charges against his ex-girlfriend and her family."
Hill, 51, had been booked into the Orange County Jail on November 13 for an unrelated shooting incident. He faced four counts of attempted murder after allegedly shooting at a former girlfriend and her family on November 12, according to Orange County Sheriff John Mina.
In the latest development, Hill now faces an additional charge of Second Degree Murder (With a Firearm) in connection with Rucker's death. Prosecutors revealed that her body was discovered in a self-storage facility at 2400 Wiggins Road in Apopka after a complaint about an unusual smell emanating from a unit registered to Cory Hill.
Upon opening the unit, deputies found Rucker dead from apparent gunshot wounds, confirmed Sheriff Mina.
Rucker's family has initiated a GoFundMe page for her four children, ranging in ages from 7 to 18.
Prosecutors declared their intention to pursue a first-degree murder indictment in Rucker's homicide. "Due to procedural rules, the State is limited to filing a Second-Degree Murder charge by Information prior to presenting the case to the Orange County Grand Jury," the statement said, CNN reported.
