Raymond Moody being evaluated at state prison before being permanently assigned

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — A man who pleaded guilty to killing Brittanee Drexel in 2009 is now being evaluated at a state prison, according to the South Carolina Department of Corrections.

Raymond Moody, 62, was taken to Kirkland Reception and Evaluation Center in Columbia, where he’s being evaluated before he’s permanently assigned to a prison, according to a spokesperson with the South Carolina Department of Corrections.

Moody will remain at the facility for one to two months, which the spokesperson said is common for all male inmates.

Moody will be “evaluated for medical, mental health, education and other issues,” according to the spokesperson.

Drexel, who was from Rochester, New York, disappeared on April 25, 2009, while she was on spring break with friends in the Myrtle Beach area. Authorities said her cell phone last pinged that day near the Charleston and Georgetown county line.

Her remains were found on May 11 in a wooded area along Old Town Avenue in Harmony Township in Georgetown County.

Moody pleaded guilty to murder, kidnapping and first-degree criminal sexual conduct. He was given a life sentence on the murder charge and 30 years each on the remaining charges, which the judge ordered to be served consecutively.

Moody was arrested and charged with obstruction of justice on May 4 in Georgetown County, but he initially was named a person of interest in her disappearance in August 2011. That charge was dropped in Wednesday morning’s hearing.

Authorities announced additional charges on May 16 after saying that Drexel’s remains had been identified.