Kidnapped DMC nurse found dead in Novi

NOVI — A nurse who was kidnapped as she left her job at the Detroit Medical Center May 13 was found dead inside the trunk of her car in Novi at approximately 9 p.m. May 14.

Patrice Wilson, 29, was leaving her job at the Detroit Medical Center at 7:40 a.m. May 13 when she was allegedly kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend, Jamere Miller, in a parking area in the 4200 block of St. Antoine, according to Detroit police. Detroit Police Chief James White said the couple is believed to have broken up recently.

As Wilson got into her vehicle, Miller, 36, allegedly approached her wearing a blond/red wig as she was getting into the driver’s side of her vehicle. He allegedly forced Wilson over and took off with her heading south toward Interstate 75 and Mack Avenue in Wilson’s black 2020 Lincoln Nautilus, according to Detroit Police Department officials.

White said the kidnapping call initially came into the Wayne State University Police Department, which notified Detroit police. Detroit police said they then deployed multiple units to look for both Wilson and Miller, including the organized crime unit, major crimes unit, homicide division, commercial auto theft division, fugitive apprehension team, special response team, the Detroit Police Department headquarters surveillance unit, and the homicide task force.

“I want the community to know that we activated all of these units with the efforts of identifying where she was located and identifying our suspect,” Detroit Police Chief James White said during a press conference May 15.

Wilson was found dead in the parking lot of Pavilion Court Apartments, 22675 Pavilion Drive in Novi. The complex is located off Haggerty Road between Nine Mile and 10 Mile roads. She reportedly had been shot. According to a Novi police report, investigators believe she was shot in Detroit.

Wilson leaves behind a 7-year-old son. A GoFundMe page, www.gofundme.com/f/PatriceWilsonRN, was established for Wilson’s funeral expenses, and the remainder will be used to create a college fund for her son. It had raised $23,866 of a $25,000 goal as of the afternoon May 23.

Miller surrendered to police at approximately 2:15 p.m. May 14 at the Detroit Detention Center after “feeling the pressure of this investigation,” White said. The surrender reportedly was negotiated by the suspect’s lawyer, according to White.

“It’s a tragedy that someone like Miss Wilson would be taken away from this world so young and so tragically in this horrific way,” White said. “She was young and she had her whole life ahead of her. She was dedicated to serving and helping others as a nurse and putting others before herself. She was also a mother. … For her to have her life taken away from her just before Mother’s Day is absolutely heartbreaking.”

Multiple police departments assisted in the investigation, including the Novi Police Department, the Michigan State Police, the Wayne State Police Department, and the Inkster Police Department.

It did not appear from 36th District Court records May 23 that Miller had been charged in Detroit. Miller faces 14 charges in a separate case in Garden City. His attorney in the 21st District Court records, Sharon Clark Woodside, declined to comment.