Telacia Fortson was a 31-year-old Cleveland mother of three who was last seen on June 3, 2009. Her remains were later found at a residence on Imperial Avenue belonging to Anthony Sowell; she became the second of eleven women whose decomposed bodies were recovered there. Telacia had been adopted at age nine and was remembered by family for enjoying poetry, flower arranging, and styling hair for friends and family. She struggled with drug use that had cost her custody of her children but remained connected to her faith and attended several churches.

Her disappearance went unreported at first, a tragic pattern noted among Sowell’s victims, and her family only learned of her fate after the late October 2009 discovery. Sowell, a previously convicted sex offender, was arrested after police searched the home and was charged with multiple counts including aggravated murder, rape, and abuse of a corpse. The funeral at Grace Missionary Baptist Church drew family, friends, and community members; Telacia’s adoptive mother Inez Fortson was hospitalized during the service from overwhelming grief.

Anyone who knew Telacia, her routines, or has information about her life or last known movements is asked to come forward.