Missing 5-year-old Orangeburg girl found safe, father charged with mother’s murder

ORANGEBURG, S.C. (WCBD)- A 5-year-old girl who went missing from her Orangeburg home on Thanksgiving has been found safe, authorities announced Friday. Her father was taken into custody.

Aspen Jeter was reported missing from her mother’s home on Nov. 25.

According to the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO), deputies were called to a home on Louise Drive on Thanksgiving to conduct a welfare check. They found the child’s mother, Crystal Jumper—who had not been heard from since Nov. 1—dead of a gunshot wound.

During a news conference Friday afternoon, Sheriff Leroy Ravenell confirmed that Aspen was found in Danville, Virginia around 12:40 p.m. on Friday. Police were led to Jeter and the child after the vehicle he was believed to be driving was spotted in a hospital parking lot.

“It’s a joyous moment, but it’s a sad moment as well,” attorney Justin Bamberg said on behalf of Aspen’s family. “This is the end of one chapter but the beginning of another.”

Antar Antonio Jeter, 46, was taken into custody and deputies have issued a warrant for his arrest in connection with Jumper’s murder.

According to arrest warrants, investigators believe Jeter shot and killed Jumper on Nov. 1 at approximately 6:45 p.m. and fled the scene with Aspen in Jumper’s car. He is charged with murder and grand larceny.

Last week, authorities opened a search for Antar after surveillance images from a department store parking lot in Fayetteville, North Carolina area showed a male with a child matching Aspen’s description.

The investigation is ongoing.

This story is breaking and will be updated.