Wife of South Carolina Pastor Mica Miller's Death Ruled Self-Inflicted as Chilling 911 Audio Surfaces
A medical examiner revealed that Mica Miller was killed by a self-inflicted gunshot wound as new details emerge surrounding her death.
Mica Miller, the late wife of South Carolina Pastor John-Paul Miller, reportedly took her own life as the couple's marriage reached a bitter end, RadarOnline.com has learned.
A medical examiner revealed her cause of death this week as heart-wrenching 911 audio emerged of her last moments.
Mica, 30, was found dead on April 27 in the state's scenic and swampy Lumber River State Park. The news of her death led to a flurry of rumors, with suspicion cast on her estranged husband and other theories stemming from the revelation that she had previously reported being harassed by an unnamed man.
Robeson County Medical Examiner Dr. Richard Johnson told local ABC station WPDE that Mica's fatal injury was "consistent with a self-inflicted gunshot wound."
Investigators used surveillance footage to determine the series of events before Mica's death.
The wound was "not in the back of the head, as it has been speculated," Johnson said. The medical examiner also asked the public to "await the full timeline of events before making assumptions and coming to conclusions."
The sheriff's office also worked to curb conjecture, confirming in a statement that the "death investigation that has tugged on the hearts of people across the nation has been ruled a suicide."
"The decision was based on surveillance footage, interviews, physical evidence, and the examination of the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office," the department wrote.
Before her death, Mica called 911 and asked the dispatcher "if her phone could be located because she was going to kill herself and wanted her family to be able to find her body," officials said. She was heard posing the question in a chilling audio recording of the call obtained by WPDE.
After Mica hung up, the dispatcher was unable to contact her but tracked down her cell phone location at the state park. Investigators found her car in the parking lot, and inside the vehicle was a handgun receipt, they said. An individual soon approached and reported finding a bag "near the water edge" that contained Mica's ID.
Officials found Mica's car in the parking lot at the Lumber River State Park on April 27.
The person said that "he heard someone crying and a gunshot while he was fishing."
Mica's body was discovered in the water along with a 9mm handgun, according to the sheriff's office.
Investigators knew she and Pastor Miller "had been separated and were involved in the legal system," so they looked into his whereabouts. Officials found that the pastor and a woman he was romantically involved with were out of the state on the night before and the day of Mica's death.
The pastor was temporarily relieved of his ministerial duties for "a time of healing, counsel, and guidance, pursuant to our governing instrument," according to WPDE.
Pastor Miller drew scrutiny earlier this month when he reportedly "laughed and appeared entirely at ease" before announcing at his church in Myrtle Beach that his wife had taken her own life, Daily Mail reported. He also asked the congregation to "leave church quietly and don't talk about the announcement here in the building."
Before her cause of death was announced, WPDE revealed that Mica had filed police reports in March, citing harassment by an unnamed individual.
She reportedly said that her tires had been deflated and claimed to have discovered a tracking device on her car. She also told officials that she "was afraid for her life."
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