(NewsNation) — A man claims he heard cries and a gunshot while fishing in a North Carolina state park before South Carolina woman Mica Miller, according to officials, took her own life in the park.
Johnnie Jacobs revealed to NewsNation affiliate WBTW that he found the 30-year-old’s fanny pack with her ID inside and heard crying followed by a gunshot, and then silence.
“Maybe five minutes after getting into the slew, I heard a cry — a faint cry. Heard it for about two or three minutes, then the crying stopped,” Jacobs said. “If it would have been a person out there crying where I could see them, I’d have checked on them all day long.”
The Robeson County medical examiner confirmed that Miller, from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. She was found dead April 27 at Lumber State Park in Lumberton, about 70 miles north of Myrtle Beach, according to the police report.
If you or someone you know needs help, resources or someone to talk to, you can find it at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline website or by calling 1-800-273-8255. People are available to talk to 24/7.
Mica Miller was ‘groomed’ for years: Police reports
While the family has questioned the official account of Miller’s death, police have said all evidence indicates Miller’s death was a suicide. However, there are lingering questions regarding her relationship with her husband, John-Paul Miller, a pastor.
In police reports obtained by WBTW, Mica Miller told police earlier this year that John-Paul Miller had been “grooming” her for years before the couple wed in 2017.
“The CP stated that she has known her husband since she was 10 years old and that he ‘groomed’ her while she worked for him at Solid Rock Church until they were married six years ago,” the police report states.
Court documents also show that John-Paul Miller had power of attorney over Mica Miller’s health care, and John-Paul Miller allegedly transferred the deed to their home to one of his sons and moved Mica Miller’s belongings from their home while she experienced a mental health crisis.
John-Paul Miller wasn’t in North Carolina, police say
Police released a timeline of the day Mica Miller died. It starts with the moment she left her house just after 11:30 a.m. April 27, to when she bought the gun police found at the scene at 12:13 p.m., and less than three hours later when she called 911 from the park, threatening to take her own life.
The sheriff’s office said that John-Paul Miller was not in North Carolina the night before or the day of Mica Miller’s death. Surveillance video captured him in Charleston, South Carolina, at an athletic event.
John-Paul Miller announced his wife’s death to his congregation April 28, saying Mica Miller had taken her own life after struggling with mental illness. However, Mica Miller’s family and friends say the details surrounding her death are puzzling and that she couldn’t have killed herself.
According to reports, Mica Miller had filed multiple times for a legal separation from John-Paul Miller. In October 2023, she filed for divorce. She also filed multiple police reports of harassment including someone slashing her car tires and someone putting a tracking device on her car.
Mica Miller told police in March after a series of harassment incidents that she feared for her life.
Mica Miller posted a video on Facebook about abuse in March, offering advice for people who may be in an abusive relationship. Some believe the video is proof that Mica Miller was in an abusive relationship herself.
