Derrick McIlwain captured, denied bond by Lancaster County judge

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - Two families whose loved ones were killed are finally closer to getting closure after months of unknown.

Derrick McIlwain is finally behind bars.

He's the man charged with the murder of Kimberly Alger back in May in Lancaster and the murder of Alvin Fletcher in South Charlotte earlier this month.

Tuesday night the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office got a tip that he was at a motel on Riverview Road in Rock Hill and with the help of several other law enforcement agencies they were able to serve a search warrant for the room and bring McIlwain into custody.

They also detained the woman who was with him, 40-year-old Brittany Oneppo. Oneppo has since been charged with Accessory After the Fact of Murder.

On Wednesday McIlwain appeared via video in Lancaster County Magistrate’s Court.

“I’m sure you already know your bond is going to be denied,” the judge told McIlwain.

Alger’s mother Susan Stack is getting some sense of closure.

“Maybe now can start to mourn our daughter and our grandchildren can sleep at night,” Stack said.

Derrick McIlwain sits in Lancaster County Jail where he is charged with domestic violence and murder.

But with closure, comes pain.

“He was laughing and smirking it’s the same face that I remember when he came to the house,” Alger’s father Leo Stack said.

Thanksgiving Day will mark 6 months since they found her body.

“Thanskgiving is gonna be hard because we have one less person at the table but there will be a lot of memories spoken of my sister,” Alger’s sister Kristen Deya said.

South Carolina Investigators searched for McIlwain months. While he was on the run, CMPD believes he went on to kill Alvin Fletcher at a town home in Ballantnye.

“He doesn’t care about anybody," Stack said. "He has caused so much pain for so many people.”

The family chose not to speak to him in court, hoping to move forward and find peace.

“We can all now breathe a little easier knowing Derrick is where he belongs,” Deya said. “In a cage.”

Wednesday the judge set his upcoming court dates in Lancaster County.

McIlwain will eventually be extradited back to Mecklenburg County where he is accused in the murder of Fletcher.

No time frame has been set for his extradition.

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