Missing woman found rotting under motel bed

The body of a Memphis woman missing since January was found on Monday under the mattress of the hotel room where she had been living. "The hotel staff actually made the discovery and called us," says Joseph Scott with the Memphis Police Department.

On January 27, 2010 Sony Millbrook was reported missing to the Memphis Police Department after she failed to pick-up her children from school. Officers were notified after family members received a call from the school that Sony had not picked up the children from school.

Family members advised officers that they checked the hotel where Sony Millbrook has been residing and she was not there. The family indicated no one was in the room. Sony had been staying at the Budget Lodge room 222 at 1533 East Brooks and was last seen there at 7:00 am by a staff member who advised officers the room had been locked out today for lack of payment but all of personal belongings were still inside the apartment. Officers contacted the Budget Lodge to verify this information via telephone.



The case was assigned to the Missing Persons Bureau for follow-up investigation, however due to the nature of the incident the case was reassigned to Homicide in February. A Homicide Investigator conducting a follow-up went to the Budget Lodge, and spoke to two clerks and a security guard. The investigator learned that Ms Millbrook did not make a payment after January 26th and her belongs were boxed up and the room released for rental. The family had been there on the 27th and 28th and removed items from the room. The room had been rented three times since January 29th till February 4th.

On March 15, 2010 Homicide Investigators were called to the Budget Inn room 222 where the body of a female had been located under the bed, after a report of bad odour was reported in the room. The body was identified as Sony Millbrook and it is apparent that she was the victim of a homicide. The cause of death is not being released at this time.

The bed in which the victim was located is a metal box frame which sits directly on the floor and the box springs and mattress sit inside the metal frame. The room had been rented approximately 5 times and cleaned by the hotel staff numerous times since January 27th. "I've worked in homicide for a long time and director Godwin says in his 37 years, he's never heard of anything like this, its stranger than fiction," said Scott.

With news video.