Vigil Honors Charlotte Teen Found Dead After Mysterious Disappearance

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C.,None — Members of North Mecklenburg High School's Air Force JROTC program held a vigil Wednesday evening for fellow cadet Delvonte Tisdale, 16, who was found dead last week in the middle of a road in Milton, Mass. -- 800 miles from Charlotte.

Cadets said they wanted to hold the vigil because, while many questions about Tisdale's death remain unanswered, his memory is not forgotten.

Tisdale had just moved to Charlotte and was new inside the North Meck hallways this year. So was sophomore Terry Massey, and the two became fast friends.

"I'm used to going down a hallway and seeing him standing there, just smiling at me," said Massey. "And now I go down the hallway and I don't see him anymore."

Dozens of students are enrolled in the school's JROTC program, but Tisdale was one of only 13 to earn a spot on the drill team. Tisdale's friends said he was eager to learn and was always polite and respectful, with a maturity beyond his years.

"He was just an honest person. He didn't disrespect anybody," said fellow drill team member Destinee Green.

Tisdale's friends and fellow cadets said the teen appeared to be happy during his last few days at school. They said he never mentioned running away, or the state of Massachusetts.

"He never skipped class -- he was that good a kid," Green said. "He loved North Meck. He loved ROTC. We're a family at ROTC, and he truly was a part of the family."

Tisdale was last seen at his home the night of Nov. 14. His body was found the next day in a suburb of Boston.

Massachusetts investigators are looking into the possibility that Tisdale stowed away in the wheel well of a plane and fell out as the aircraft approached Logan International Airport in Boston.

An airport spokesman confirmed to Eyewitness News that several flights from Charlotte flew over the suburban area where Tisdale's body was discovered. He said, based on the time line, detectives are focusing their investigation on two of the flights from that night.

No one at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport has said how Tisdale might have gained access to the wheel well of an airliner. ROTC cadets said they had not been to the airport this year for any sort of training or touring.

WSOC