Police in Charlotte, N.C., said they have arrested a man in connection with the murder of a Germantown woman and the disappearance of her young son. The boy, 11-year-old William McQuain, remains missing.

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The suspect, Curtis Maurice Lopez, 45, was taken into custody in Charlotte, N.C. He was arrested on a murder arrest warrant out of Maryland. Lopez is McQuain’s husband and William’s stepfather.

Police say Lopez was last seen Wednesday removing items from his estranged wife's apartment where the 51-year-old woman was found dead last night.

Neighbor Sis Ford says he chatted with Lopez for about 20 minutes as he carried out a flat-screen TV to his wife's sports-utility vehicle. Police located the car in North Carolina. The vehicle was unoccupied.

"He said he had to take it to the shop... I thought something is awful wrong,” Ford remembers.

Officers found Jane McQuain dead in her bedroom at the Seneca Knolls Condos in the 1300 block of Briarcliff Terrace about 8:25 p.m. Wednesday night. Investigators say there was trauma to her body.

William was last seen in class at Martin Luther King middle school on Sept. 30.
Concerned school officials called a good friend of the mother, who then reported both mother and son missing.

"We are at a great loss because she was really a wonderful individual, a great mother,” said the friend, who spoke exclusively with WJLA but asked that he remain anonymous. He said friends “hold out hope” that the boy will be found. Police believe he was abducted.

William is described as a light skin black male, approximately 5' tall and weighs about 85 pounds.

Montgomery County Police Chief Thomas Manger appealed to anyone with information to contact police.

"My hope is that he might be with a family member," he said, holding a photo of the child.

Lopez has been charged with first-degree murder. Sources tell us he is not fully cooperating with detectives asking about his stepson's whereabouts.

Family friend Jennifer Hunt said she’s "concerned and angry".

Diane Speakes says when she last saw the McQuains, William was in his football gear. “And we just kinda waved and that was it,” Speakes says. “And I don't remember seeing her since.”

Maryland State Police have issued an Amber Alert for William, and asks that anyone with information about the case call 240.773.5070. Callers may remain anonymous.

(Police outside of the condominium complex where the woman's body was found. Photo: Jummy Olabanji/ABC7)