ATLANTA — An Atlanta Instagram model and dancer with more than half a million followers was found dead in Ghana, reports say on a work trip -- and now her family is trying to get answers and justice.
The family tells 11Alive's Kaitlyn Ross, the social media star, was murdered. Ross talked exclusively to her family Wednesday night. We are not sharing their full names because they say the model's alleged killers have already been released from jail.
"She had the best laugh, she had a heart of gold," her sister, Danielle, said.
Julie Diane Williams' family said the 37-year-old mother of three was incredibly kind and always curious.
"She was a free spirit, and she was just full of joy and happiness," her sister said.
Her sister adds Williams' free spirit amassed her a massive following on Instagram and Only Fans, which drew the attention of club owners in Africa who would fly her out over the winter holidays to perform for the past five years.
"It's common for girls to go overseas and go on work visas to make money," her sister said. "And they'll go for a month at a time."
William was booked to perform in Ghana when her family said she stopped responding to text messages in mid-December, the reports say.
"We started calling police stations and police officers there. That didn't get us anywhere. So eventually we got in touch with the FBI here who got us in touch with the embassy there," she said.
The family said it took days to track her sister's body down, and even then, they couldn't get answers about what happened to her. Local reports surfaced in Ghana media saying the woman was found dead in her hotel room, but the information surrounding the model's death has been limited.
"It's still hard. It's like nobody cared," her sister said.
Initial reports from Ghana speculated she could have died by suicide or a drug overdose.
"My sister didn't do drugs, she didn't even drink alcohol, so I knew from the beginning that it could not be true, that it absolutely could not be true," her sister said.
Eventually, the coroner ruled she had been murdered, and five men were arrested for her death -- including the wealthy owner of the hotel where Williams was staying.
But her family said they're all now out on bond.
"That's why we haven't come out because we are scared to death. We are scared to death. If he could do this to an American citizen and walk away, what else could he do and what has he done," her sister said.
She said they couldn't get answers about the investigation or what consequences her sister's alleged killers could face.
"I want to see people held accountable for what happened to her. They made her seem like less than a person, and she was a really important person to us. And for them just to take her like she didn't even matter, I want to see them held accountable for what they did," she said.
She wants her sister to get justice.
"She had goals and ambitions, she did what she had to do to make a living for her kids. And her legacy should be that, that she left people better than she found them," she said.
Williams' body was flown home last month, and the family hired a local coroner to perform an autopsy in Georgia.
Her family wants to raise awareness for other people traveling overseas.
"This is something that girls do. All over the world, they do this, so just check in to your embassy. That's why they're there, is to protect you. And they can't protect you if you don't check in to your embassy. Check in," she said.
They have not yet planned Williams' funeral.
