‘It was evil’: Nashville woman stabbed, burned, dumped on Pennsylvania interstate
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A Nashville woman was killed and left burning on the side of the interstate hundreds of miles away, but that’s not how her family wants her remembered.
Michelle Tayse, 48, was found dead along Interstate 90 in Erie County, Pennsylvania, last week, according to officials. However, Michelle’s loved ones believe the mother was killed in Tennessee.
“I cried so bad the first three days that my eyes hurt, and now I kind of just feel numb,” Kelsie Tayse explained. “I just can’t believe that something like this happened to my mom.”
Kelsie’s name was one of seven tattooed on her mother’s arm. All seven tattoos were for Michelle’s children, with the youngest being 15, who are now mourning her death alongside her four grandchildren.
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“It’s real hard on us that we didn’t get to see her again or tell her goodbye or anything. They took that from us,” Kelsie said.
The details surrounding Michelle’s death are simply incomprehensible for her family.
“The only thing that we know for sure is that she was taken 15 hours away from her hometown, she was stabbed, they poured accelerant on her and caught her on fire, and threw her on the side of the road like she was nothing,” Kelsie told News 2.
The Belle Valley Fire Department reportedly discovered Michelle’s body around 2:30 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 10 while responding to a brush fire at mile marker 30 on I-90.
According to the Erie County coroner, Michelle was not only stabbed multiple times in the chest, but her body was badly burned.
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“Just to think of something like this, just to really think about how she felt before she died, ’cause she was stabbed several times, so I feel like she suffered. I just hate that for her,” Kelsie said.
Her family is eager to share their story in hopes that someone can help find Michelle’s killer.
“She’s homeless, so she was in the Nashville area on Gallatin Pike and I think that somebody must have snatched her up and took her there,” Kelsie explained.
A candlelight vigil is being held on Friday, Nov. 17 in that East Nashville area on Gallatin Pike, as the family prays someone who knows what happened to Michelle comes forward.
“That’s the general area, her stomping grounds where the majority of her friends are at, where we believe she could have been taken from,” Michelle’s daughter described. “So we would just like to get this story out there so if they seen anything or heard anything, they can reach out to the tip line and let them know.”
SEE ALSO: PA police asking for public’s help to solve TN woman’s murder
Pennsylvania State Police are turning to truck drivers for help with the investigation. Troopers have been handing out fliers, asking drivers who may have been around mile marker 30 on I-90 between 1:30 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. on Nov. 10 to review their dash camera footage in hopes of finding a break in the case.
“I just want to get justice. I mean, what they did was wrong, it was evil,” Kelsie told News 2. “It’s just crazy to think that somebody could do that and go on living their life every day like nothing happened.”
According to Kelsie, Michelle didn’t have a life insurance policy or any money saved up, and her family doesn’t have enough to pay for a proper burial. If you would like to help cover the costs of Michelle’s funeral, visit this GoFundMe page.
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Meanwhile, anyone with information about Michelle’s death is asked to call Pennsylvania State Police’s Criminal Investigative Unit at 814-898-1641.
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