Police: No foul play suspected in teenage girl’s disappearance

Horry County police said Monday evidence suggests a missing teen girl “left alone and not under duress or coercion.”

Marley McKenna Spindler, 16, was last seen about 7:30 a.m. Thursday when she met her friends at a Chick-Fil-A on S.C. 544 before school, Denis said. Police learned that Spindler went to pick up a man, identified as Jeremy, to take him home in the Garden City Beach area of Georgetown County.

Police identified and cleared “Jeremy” by 7:45 p.m. Friday, Denis said.

Police spotted Spindler on municipal surveillance cameras driving down Ocean Boulevard and withdrawing less than $100 from her bank, Denis said. Spindler had changed clothes before withdrawing the money, he said.

“We have no reason to believe that there is any foul play involved in this case,” Denis said.

Denis said a search of her cellular phone revealed evidence that she left alone. Detectives continue to follow up on leads and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children is aiding Horry County police in the investigation, Denis said.

“Our information so far indicates that she is likely alone and we have no evidence of foul play at this time,” Denis said. The police’s tip line is still active, he said.

Spindler told friends she would be at school after picking up Jeremy, but she did not show up to Socastee High School and has not been seen since, according to an Horry County police report. A friend of Spindler told police that “Jeremy” was somewhere on Ocean Boulevard and Spindler had met him on the beach about three weeks ago.

Spindler was last heard from in a group text message at 8:42 a.m. Thursday, according to the report. Spindler’s father called her cellphone at 4 p.m. and a clerk with Ocean Reef Resort answered and said the phone had been found earlier in the day in their parking lot.

Detectives took the phone and reported that Spindler was driving a silver 2002 Ford Escape with South Carolina license plate No. KFI776.

On Friday, Denis released a photo of Spindler’s vehicle. The photo was taken by another law enforcement agency before she was reported missing, he said. It’s unclear the details under which the law enforcement agency got the photo.

Several state and national agencies have joined Horry County police in the search for Spindler.

“The effort to find Marley McKenna Spindler has been announced through the National Crime Information Center and authorities in a very large area are looking for her,” Denis said Monday.

Anyone with information about Spindler’s whereabouts can call Horry County police at 843-915-7995.

This story was originally published August 24, 2015 at 3:52 PM with the headline "Police: No foul play suspected in teenage girl’s disappearance."