A woman with three children was reportedly enticed to her demise by a man who persuaded her to leave her current life for a job opportunity over 100 miles away. Angel Whitaker, aged 37, relocated from Bristol, Virginia to Bluefield, West Virginia earlier this year after being offered an assistant manager position by Donald Pennington, a former colleague. Their relationship began in 2018 at an auto shop in Bristol where Angel worked before moving to West Virginia.

However, Angel’s family lost contact with her in April, prompting her sister Angela to report her missing on May 4. Allegedly, Angel and Pennington’s relationship soured after she moved in with him. Angela informed authorities that her sister had checked into a hotel in Princeton a few weeks before disappearing to distance herself from Pennington due to their strained relationship. Angel was last seen on April 17, showing up to work intoxicated. Pennington claimed he drove her home that day, but she was missing upon his return from work.

Following Angel’s disappearance, Pennington’s ex-partner informed police that he had murdered her. She revealed constant arguments between the couple in the weeks leading up to Angel going missing. Pennington claimed he intervened in an argument between Angel and a family member on April 17 and alleged that Angel had threatened him. Subsequently, he admitted to choking her to death during an altercation.

Pennington reportedly disposed of Angel’s phones by soaking them in bleach and destroying their SIM cards. He then purchased concrete from a store and allegedly buried Angel in Bastian, Virginia, with the help of his ex-partner. Despite search efforts by Virginia State Police cadaver dogs, Angel’s remains were not found. Pennington was arrested on May 13 and is currently in custody, facing charges of second-degree murder and concealing a body. Angel’s children have initiated a GoFundMe campaign to cover her funeral expenses, expressing their devastation over the loss of their mother.