Seeking Justice: The murder of a Cleveland mother of 2 remains ...

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) -Ashley Leszyeski’s life was cut short in a brutal murder more than a decade ago.

A mother of two young children, she would have turned 33 this past Wednesday.

19 Investigates spoke with the victim’s family.

They’re holding out hope the case will be solved soon.

The holidays are supposed to be a season of joy.

But for Ashley Leszyeski’s family, something will always be missing now.

“It just hurts me that, like, life could have been so different if she was still here,” said

Heather Leszyeski Mullett, Ashley’s sister.

Ashley came from a big family. She was one of eight siblings raised mostly on the east side of Cleveland.

Ashley and her sister Heather were the middle children.

“She was wonderful. Honestly, she was loving. She always thought of people. She was always there for everyone,” she said.

They were pregnant at the same time and couldn’t wait to raise their kids together.

“I feel like my sister, she just wanted to be loved so much and wanted to have that sense of of family and happiness and like that, you know, fairy tale ending of a wonderful man, her children, all of that. And unfortunately, it didn’t happen for her,” Leszyeski Mullett said.

Ashley was 21 years old with two toddlers at home when she went missing one day in early May 2013. Heather remembers everything seemed fine right before that.

“I seen her and she yelled across the street, I love you boo and I’ll see you later and stuff like that.That was my last time I saw my sister,” she said.

Days turned into weeks, until someone found Ashley’s body in a vacant lot on E. 93rd Street and Anderson Avenue.

“Just like that. Like she was nothing. And then just dumped her to the side in a, in a open field, like she was a nobody,” Leszyeski Mullett said.

The medical examiner determined Ashley died from several sharp force injuries.

“Honestly, it traumatized our family. Like, never in a million years do we ever expect-- I mean, it’s one thing to pass away, you know, from a sickness. But it’s another thing when your life is taken away from you,” she said.

A few other women were also murdered around E. 93rd Street around the same time period, leaving many people wondering if the murders were connected.

But Ashley’s family believes they are not connected and they think they know who killed her.

“That’s what’s unfair in my, in my opinion, is that her life was taken away from her, all because of someone that obviously had anger issues and violent issues and just didn’t care about the value of her life,” her sister said.

We asked Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy Todd about Ashley’s case.

“Each unsolved case, is you know, unanswered questions to families and we continue these investigations even though it’s been many years that have passed. But it’s still an active investigation and we do follow up on every lead that comes through,” Chief Todd said.

We learned Cleveland Police referred Ashley’s case to the G.O.L.D. Unit with the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office.

The prosecutor’s office told 19 Investigates the G.O.L.D. Unit works on cold cases and re-opened the investigation.

More than 11 years later, now all Heather can do is fight.

She’s fighting for justice for her sister, who should have been here with her as they raised their kids side by side, together.

Instead, Ashley’s children, now 12 and 13 years old, are being raised without her by another one of their siblings.

“And do I believe she is a beautiful angel looking down and watching everything? Yeah, but it’s never the same. And it never will be the same,” Leszyeski Mullett said.

Call with any information

Ashley’s family is still seeking justice.

Can you help detectives solve this case?

If you have any information, call the G.O.L.D. Unit at 216.443.7781.

You can also call Crime Stoppers with anonymous tips at 216-252-7463 or go to www.25 crime.com.

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