MOUNT VERNON, Ky. (FOX 56) — The last time Irene Thompson heard her daughter’s voice, 34-year-old September Lee told her something she’ll never forget.
“She said, ‘I love you, mom.’”
Not long after, Thompson’s phone rang with devastating news.
“He says, ‘I hate to tell you this, but September’s been murdered,’” Thompson said.
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Lee was found dead outside her camper in Imperial County, California, on June 30.
At a recent hearing, Thompson said she learned her daughter had been buried alive.
“She had burn lesions, and there was smoke in her lungs,” she said.
Thompson said law enforcement never told her what happened; instead, it was her daughter’s boyfriend, James Hill, who broke the news.
“I’m hollering, ‘Oh no, James. Oh God. No, no, no,’” Thompson said.
In August, Thompson traveled more than 2,000 miles by train and bus, desperate for answers about her daughter’s death.
“At times, I felt like it was some kind of joke,” she said. “They didn’t report my daughter’s body being found for three weeks. And any other time it would be that day. Along with not notifying me within the first 24 hours, which is by law.”
She said she still hasn’t received her daughter’s ashes.
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“She deserves the truth, and she deserves to be brought home. This is ridiculous,” Thompson said.
In early September, Hill was arrested in connection with the murder.
But Thompson said her heart is torn.
“I find it hard, but not impossible, but hard to believe,” explained Thompson. “I’ll deal with whatever the truth is. If he did it, he did it; let God deal with him. But I’ll still keep praying for him.”
Hill’s bond is set at $2 million.
Thompson is asking anyone with information about the case to reach out to law enforcement.
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