This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at988 or 1-800-273-TALK(8255).
North Carolina authorities on Tuesday released a 911 call and comprehensive timeline of South Carolina woman Mica Miller’s last moments leading up to her death by suicide April 27.
Robeson County Medical Examiner Richard Johnson ruled Miller died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after authorities found her in Lumber River State Park, about an hour’s drive from the Millers’ hometown of Myrtle Beach, April 27.
“This incident has garnered much attention from across the Carolinas and beyond. I want to assure everyone that a very methodical investigation was conducted by our Criminal Investigations Team and Crime Scene Investigative Team,” Sheriff Burnis Wilkins said in a statement Tuesday. “Unfortunately, rumors and conspiracy theories were spreading quickly, and assumptions were being made.
DEATH OF SOUTH CAROLINA PASTOR’S WIFE UNDER INVESTIGATION AS HER FAMILY WARNS OF ‘FALSE’ STORIES
The Robeson County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina is reportedly investigating the April 27 death of 30-year-old Mica Miller of Myrtle Beach. (Facebook)
“However, in the end, we must make decisions based on the facts and evidence that has been gathered. While I know it’s not what many people wanted to hear, the evidence is quite clear and compelling, and we are as saddened as anyone that this occurred. There are many factors that we have reviewed that occurred over an extended period of time that are probably related to the reason for this investigation, but in the end, sadly, a tragic decision was made by Mica that ended her life.”
Miller, 30, was married to a pastor named John-Paul Miller, the lead preacher at a congregation called Solid Rock at Market Common in Myrtle Beach. John-Paul has reportedly been released from ministry duties at the church, where he announced his wife’s suicide April 28, the day after her death, ABC 15 reported.
Speculation surrounding the circumstances of Mica’s death began circulating on social media, particularly because Mica was in the process of formally separating from her husband. She had filed three “separate support and maintenance” requests since last year, the latest filed April 16. Separate support and maintenance allows one spouse to receive court-ordered support from another spouse without officially divorcing.
Mica Miller’s loved ones have noted a strange line in her obituary that says she “would praise her husband after every church service telling him he was the best preacher in the world (even if it wasn’t true).” (Facebook)
But Robeson County Sheriff’s Office investigators determined Miller “and a female that he is allegedly romantically involved with” were not in Robeson County at the time of Mica’s death.
“Investigators learned through interviews that John Paul Miller was at an athletic event in Charleston on the day of Mica Miller’s death. John Miller’s vehicle was observed traveling on Hwy 17 Bypass, in Horry County at 2:22 pm on April 27, 2024,” the sheriff’s office said in a press release. “The investigation confirmed that John Miller was accompanied while traveling to and from the event in Charleston, SC.”
Investigators also determined that Mica purchased a 9 mm Sig Sauer handgun from a pawn shop on the morning she allegedly died by suicide. Authorities found the gun case and a receipt for the purchase in her vehicle at Lumber River State Park.
Investigators also determined Mica purchased a 9 mm Sig Sauer handgun from a pawn shop the day she allegedly died by suicide. (Robeson County Sheriff)
They later recovered a 9 mm Sig Sauer handgun where she was found dead, noting the same “serial number on the weapon matched the gun box that was found in Miller’s Honda Accord.”
In a 911 call made to Robseon County 2:54 p.m., which was shared by the sheriff’s office, Mica can be heard asking a dispatcher if she can track down her location. When the dispatcher says she tracked Mica to the Lumber River State Park, she asked Mica why she wanted her location known.
“Tell me what happened,” the dispatcher says.
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Investigators later recovered a 9 mm Sig Sauer handgun from the location of her death with the same “serial number on the weapon matched the gun box that was found in Miller’s Honda Accord.” (Robeson County Sheriff)
“I’m about to kill myself, and I just want my family to know where to find me,” Mica can be heard saying.
A friend of Mica says she does not “agree with” the medical examiner’s findings that Miller died by suicide.
“It just makes me s[o] mad. I don’t believe it’s over,” Allicia Young told Fox News Digital. “I believe more stuff will come out! It always does.”
In a 911 call shared by the sheriff’s office, Mica can be heard asking a dispatcher if she can track down her location. (Robeson County Sheriff)
Young said Mica was “always, so positive, so encouraging,” and “supportive.”
“I honestly don’t think I really ever heard a negative word coming out of her mouth, because that’s just the type of person she was,” Young said. “She was never afraid to speak out about her faith or even stop and pray for somebody. She was very bold like that.”
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Young, who was a former member of Solid Rock congregation and friends with the Millers through her husband, said John-Paul’s sermons often mentioned his wife and her struggles with mental health. The pair apparently met when Mica was just 14 years old in John-Paul’s youth group, Young said.
Mica’s friends and family have been sharing posts on social media with the hashtag “JusticeforMica.” (Facebook)
The day after his wife’s death, John-Paul’s sermon mentioning his wife’s suicide rubbed Young the wrong way, too.
“What pastor gets up in less than 24 hours of his wife’s passing to still give a sermon and already has a funeral planned for the following week? Nobody does that,” she said.
GO HERE FOR MORE TRUE CRIME FROM FOX NEWS DIGITAL
An obituary for Miller states the 30-year-old woman was “energetic, affirming, adventurous, faithful, loving, giving, forgiving, talented, joyous, creative, assertive, bold, determined, authoritative, passionate, hardworking, a risk taker, and so much more.”
The Horry County Clerk’s Office in South Carolina confirmed to Fox News Digital Mica Miller filed three different “separate support and maintenance” requests since last year, the latest filed April 16 (Facebook)
However, Mica’s loved ones on social media are noting one part of the obituary that strikes them as odd: “She would praise her husband after every church service telling him he was the best preacher in the world (even if it wasn’t true). She also told him he was the funniest preacher in the world (even though that wasn’t true either). Mica loved her family soooooooo much.”
Young said the pastor mentioned Mica often in his sermons and spoke about women in a generally derogatory manner.
“He always made sure that he told everybody that he had a hot wife and how hot she was, and that every man should go out and find themselves a hot wife,” Young said.
The Horry County Clerk’s Office confirmed to Fox News Digital that Mica had filed three “separate support and maintenance” requests since last year, the latest filed on April 16. Separate support and maintenance allows one spouse to receive court-ordered support from another spouse without officially divorcing.
North Carolina investigators observed John-Paul Miller’s vehicle traveling on Highway 17 in Horry County, S.C., around the time of Mica’s death April 27. (Robeson County Sheriff)
Since Mica’s death, which has rocked the Myrtle Beach community, her family and friends have been sharing posts on social media with the hashtag “JusticeforMica.”
Her sister pleaded with friends on social media to “not listen to false stories being shared about” Mica.
“Mica was a God-fearing, joyful, loving woman who did not deserve the abuse she endured. If you hear anything about this from anyone other than her family please question it, reach out to her siblings or parents,” she wrote.
Fox News Digital reached out to John-Paul’s Myrtle Beach congregation, Solid Rock at Market Common, for comment but did not immediately hear back. Regina Ward, an attorney representing Mica’s family, also did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Fox News Digital.
Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. Email tips to [email protected] or on Twitter at @audpants.
