‘It’s been a long journey’: Girlfriend of Brittanee Drexel’s killer pleads guilty to federal charges

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WMBF) – The longtime girlfriend of Brittanee Drexel’s convicted killer has pleaded guilty to charges connected to the case.

Angel Vause, 56, pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to counts of making a false statement to a federal agent in connection to Drexel’s disappearance and death. Vause’s bond was also revoked, and she was taken to jail after the hearing.

Drexel’s mother and father spoke after the Vause entered her plea.

Dawn Pleckan Conley said she feels her family is one step closer to getting justice.

“I don’t think you ever get closure with losing a child. I think it’s a resolution to what happened and she will pay dearly for what she did to my daughter,” Conley said.

Meanwhile, her father, John Kahyaoglu, said being at the hearing was emotional for him.

“I’m still soaking it in but I got some happiness out of it. I got a lot of happiness out of it, that she’s not just going to walk out of here,” Kahyaoglu said. “A lot of people have been working on this and been waiting for this day. I can’t wait until sentencing of course, but it’s been a long journey.”

Vause was initially set to plead guilty last month, but changed her mind in the closing moments of a hearing and wanted to stand trial. She later changed her mind again, leading to Monday’s final hearing.

Vause’s boyfriend, Raymond Moody, confessed in May 2022 that he and Vause picked up Drexel on April 25, 2009. Drexel was walking down the street, and Moody asked her if she wanted to party and smoke marijuana.

The three ended up at a campsite in Georgetown County, where Moody kidnapped, raped and killed the teenager. Her remains were found in the Harmony Township area over a decade later.

Vause talked with the FBI around May 11, 2022, and told an agent she went to pick up keys during the killing but was driving in another direction for a different reason, court documents state.

She also said that Drexel kept her cell phone when the FBI alleges Vause took Drexel’s phone and dumped it between Georgetown and Charleston counties.

Vause added that Drexel voluntarily joined her and Moody, but the FBI said Drexel was actually abducted “under false pretenses.”

A date for Vause’s sentencing was not immediately set, but she could face a maximum sentence of 24 years.

A U.S. probation officer must prepare a pre-sentencing report before sentencing can happen. Assistant U.S. Attorney Winston Holliday hopes the sentencing will take place some time in November.

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