Charlotte mother found in vehicle remembered as ‘bubbly’ and ‘always happy’
Two things were almost certainly going to happen if you were meeting Frezja Matisse Baker: you were going to get a hug, and you were going to feel like you made a new friend.
The 31-year-old mother, who was found dead in a car in west Charlotte on Dec. 9, got along with everyone, said close friend Tyneshia Johnson. Baker drew people in with her bubbly and warm personality.
“She got along with everybody. She was not a confrontational person,” Johnson said in an interview with The Charlotte Observer on Monday. “She always wanted to be around positive people and positivity.”
Baker, who was last seen on Dec. 4, was found in the 2300 block of Sanders Avenue. Lorenza Thomas Inman Jr., 38, was arrested on Dec. 12, in Maxton, a town in Robeson and Scotland counties 100 miles southeast of Charlotte.
Johnson said she was angry when she learned what happened to her friend, nicknamed Frappé. And she was also hurt by the loss of her friend with “two left feet.”
“She just had a distinct walk,” Johnson said. “You could spot her walk from a mile away.”
Baker was one of her best friends, Johnson said. She was Johnson’s road trip buddy and one of her biggest cheerleaders. In Baker, she said she found a compassionate and giving friend who always made sure to celebrate her friends’ accomplishments no matter how small.
“Whatever I needed, she was always there,” Johnson said. “She never asked questions, she’d be like ‘I’m on my way.’ We’d talk about it once she got there.”
Dinner plans with Baker
Johnson and Baker had dinner plans on Dec. 4, Johnson said. Baker was going to take her 2-year-old son to a dentist appointment, and then go to Johnson’s house for dinner later. But Baker didn’t show up.
Johnson said she didn’t think much of it since Baker, a doting mother, often got sidetracked with her son. However, when a friend called the next day to say she hadn’t heard from Baker either, Johnson began to worry.
“We called her mom,” Johnson said. “She was like ‘No, we’re looking for her. We thought she was at one of your guys' house.’ And we’re like ‘No, she’s not over here.’”
Johnson said she knew Baker had been with Inman the day they were supposed to meet for dinner. She and some friends called him, Johnson said. But each time one of the friends called him, he told them each a different story, Johnson said.
“Once he started telling us different stories, we knew something was wrong,” Baker said. And then Inman started calling to see if Baker had been found or what the group of friends might know, Johnson said.
Soon after, the phone calls from Inman turned angry, Johnson said. The friends posted about Baker on Facebook, asking if anyone had information or tips about where she was or if they had seen her since she went missing.
“People started tagging him and stuff ... and calling his phone,” Johnson said. “That’s when he started getting really, really anxious, like he started getting really angry.”
Inman was charged with murder, assault on a female and misdemeanor domestic violence, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department news release.
Homecoming queen and kind person
Maghan Cunningham Kirschner, who taught Baker at the former Wilson Middle School, said her student was a “gentle, sweet” person.
“Her smile and the genuineness in her eyes just showed through,” Cunningham Kirschner said. “There was not anything that she wouldn’t do for anyone.”
Baker was hardworking, and always gave her earnest effort in anything she did, her former teacher said.
Cunningham Kirschner said she and Baker would sometimes talk about the importance of family and faith. Baker would often sneak back into her classroom to talk or to give her a hug. Cunningham Kirschner said she’d have to usher her out to make sure Baker wasn’t late to class.
“She always wanted that extra second with everybody that she encountered,” Cunningham Kirschner said.
The last time she and Baker caught up was before the COVID-19 pandemic. Baker had been working at a David’s Bridal store, where she was doing fittings for women and tailoring dresses.
“I think that, too, just speaks to the light that she had because those are the most special intimate moments that women have,” Cunningham Kirschner said. “When they’re trying on their bridal dress, and the fact that she was there and, she was able to make that moment so special for everyone.”
Other educators who knew Baker at West Mecklenburg High School spoke fondly of her as well, highlighting her ability to be kind to anyone.
“She had a kind heart and always had a smile on her face. All her friends loved her as well,” Lindsey Smith said. I hate that this happened and her life was taken at such a young age. She deserved better.”
In high school, Baker was elected homecoming queen. Johnson said it wasn’t a surprise because of how well she got along with her classmates. Darrell Potts, who was an educator at West Mecklenburg High School, said it was Baker’s “humility and kindness” that helped her connect with her peers.
“It’s incomprehensible that someone would harm such a remarkable individual,” Potts said.
Toy drive for Baker’s son
While the holidays have seemed to come to a halt for many of Baker’s loved ones, they have not for her son, Johnson said.
When news of Baker’s passing spread, people reached out to ask what her son’s sizes were and what kind of toys he might want. Rather than try to collect things individually, she and her group of friends decided to make it a special day for Baker’s son.
People will park and open their trunks and bring out whatever gifts they bought for him on Dec. 20, Johnson said. It’s planned to be a surprise for the boy, Johnson said.
“[Baker] really wanted him to have a great Christmas this year,” Johnson said. “He wanted a train. His main thing is trains. So me being his aunt, I’m going to get that for him. Because she told me he wanted that before she passed away.”
Observer multimedia journalist Diamond Vences contributed to this story.
This story was originally published December 16, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
