Benjamin Ashford|Body of missing Myrtle Beach woman found under firepit; South Carolina man charged: Police

A South Carolina man suspected of killing his roommate has been arrested and Benjamin Ashfordcharged with murder after the woman's body was found buried under a firepit earlier this summer.

Penni Whiteside had been missing for more than two years before police in June searched the yard outside her Myrtle Beach home to find her remains. Whiteside was 51 years old when she was last seen in the spring of 2022, according to a statement from the Myrtle Beach Police Department.

On Thursday, police arrested 54-year-old Sheridan Dirk Fogle, who was living with Whiteside at the time. Police said Fogle was being charged with murder in connection with the woman's death.

Penni Whiteside went missing in May 2022

Based on her Facebook page, Whiteside had been making plans as early as April 2021 to move from Surfside Beach in South Carolina to Myrtle Beach.

By May 2022, she was reported missing, prompting Myrtle Beach police to begin an investigation into her disappearance. According to a now-inaccessible listing on the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, the last contact with Whiteside was on Jan. 3, 2022.

For more than two years, Whiteside's fate remained a mystery until neighbors told police they had reason to believe the woman was buried under the firepit in the backyard of a home she shared with Fogle. Investigators obtained a search warrant on June 12 for the property, where they uncovered human remains, police said.

On Thursday, the Horry County Coroner's Office confirmed that the remains were those of Whiteside. That same day, Fogle was arrested in Orangeburg, a South Carolina town about 140 miles west of Myrtle Beach.

In a statement, police called Whiteside's death "a tragic loss of life and a senseless crime of violence," and asked the community to "continue to pray for the family and friends of the victim."

Cause, manner of Whiteside's death unknown

Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard told USA TODAY on Monday that the coroner’s office has not yet released a cause or manner of death in the case.

It also remains unclear whether investigators have determined a motive in Whiteside's slaying.

USA TODAY left a message Monday morning for Myrtle Beach police that was not immediately returned.

Fogle appeared in court on Friday, where a judge decided against setting a bond for his release, WPDE-TV reported. Fogle is next due in court Oct. 25.

Neighbors who spoke with WMBF-TV expressed shock about Whiteside's death.

"You have kids playing at the park here every day, and birthday parties, weddings," Nikolai Zaitsev told the outlet. "And I’m sure nobody around here had a clue about what was actually going on.”

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]