Michael Howell and Sallie Rohrbach
CHARLOTTE & RALEIGH -- A man is in the Mecklenburg County jail, charged with the murder of a Harnett County woman.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department arrested 40-year-old Michael Howell late Sunday, charging him in the murder of 44-year-old Sallie Rohrbach. The woman worked for the N.C. Department of Insurance and was auditing Howell’s agency on Wednesday.
No one has heard from her since, and no body has been discovered, but CMPD says there is enough evidence at the office, Howell’s car and Rohrbach’s car to charge the man with murder.
The Dilworth Insurance Agency was closed on Monday. One customer was still on hand after having been told to visit by Howell.
“I talked to him on Friday, he just told me to bring my documentation and that's what I was doing. I had no idea that it was this serious,” said Nikki Robinson. "I had paid my insurance like four months in advance because the premium went down so I had paid it through April and I got a letter from DMV saying it had been cancelled in March."
A man is in the Mecklenburg County jail, charged with the murder of a Harnett County woman. News 14 Carolina's Kate Gaier has more.
The N.C. Department of Insurance says Rohrbach was investigating a number of customer complaints. News 14 Carolina's Deborah Tuff has more.
The N.C. Department of Insurance says Rohrbach was investigating a number of customer complaints. The department says this is the first time it has investigated Dilworth Insurance.
"I'm really in shock,” said Sandy Courtney, owner of The Perk at South End. “I'm curious to know what happened. He was quiet and reserved; I wouldn't expect him to do that. I can't believe."
CMPD says Rohrbach was last seen Wednesday at the insurance agency, located on South Boulevard. Four days later, her car was found abandoned at the Bojangles at the corner of West Boulevard and South Tryon Street, less than a mile away.
"A combination of interviews and physical evidence the detectives have recovered from several locations … lead them to charging [Howell] with murder in this case,” said Julie Hill with CMPD.
CMPD says they will continue to search as long as they feel necessary to locate Rohrbach.