Detectives identify suspect in murder of mother of 3 girls in Hollywood

Detectives search for murder suspect Carnell Lee Jr. in stolen Nissan Maxima

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – Detectives believe the mother of three girls who was found dead Wednesday morning in Broward County's city of Hollywood knew her killer.

The Hollywood Police Department identified Coretta T. Bain's suspected killer as Carnell Spencer Lee Jr., her boyfriend. He is accused of stealing her black 2017 Nissan Maxima, which has dark tinted windows and Florida tag GJFT47.

"Our family is grieving now," said Bain's father, Michael Bain, who lives in Alabama and was on his way to South Florida Wednesday afternoon. "You know, and it is sad. He took my daughter away from me ... There was no cause for him, whatever it was, there was no cause for him to shoot her."

Officer Christian Lata said detectives are asking for the public's help with finding Lee. He released three images from a surveillance camera showing Lee dressed in black. 

Detectives released images from surveillance video showing Carnell Spencer Lee Jr. at the scene of the crime.

"The suspect is believed to have been involved in an altercation with the victim," said Lata, a spokesman for the Hollywood Police Department. 

Police officers and paramedics found Bain dead about 4:30 a.m. inside of her second-story apartment  near the intersection of Washington Street and South 56th Avenue in Hollywood. She was 31 years old.

Bain's relatives and friends said she worked at a U.S. Post Office near her home and she likely knew the man who killed her. In November 2017, she shared a picture on Facebook showing her and colleagues in uniform after completing the Postal City Carrier Assistant training. 

"We had a bond no one would ever have known regardless of us not talking everyday," Bain's friend Amanda Simmons wrote on Facebook. "When we did, it was everything, and he just wiped her from us like that."

Detectives are asking anyone with information about Bain's murder and Lee's whereabouts to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.


About the Authors:

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.