The naked body of Alexis Sharkey, 26, was found at the side of a Houston road on November 28 – in circumstances yet to be explained

Her death remains a mystery and there have been no arrests in connection

Now friends say the influencer worked for hair and beauty brand Monat

The ‘murdered’ Houston influencer was an executive director in a beauty ‘pyramid scheme’ whose products reportedly, ‘made users’ hair fall out’

The brand has faced claims that customers experienced hair loss, balding and itching

The Florida based company, founded in 2014, is multi-level marketing scheme, described as ‘akin to pyramid schemes’

The company, Monat, was accused of operating as a pyramid scheme in one lawsuit filed in 2018

Her cause of death is yet to be determined, but Texas officials said a preliminary autopsy did not rule out foul play

Friends say Alexis Sharkey, who had thousands of followers on Instagram, worked for hair and beauty brand Monat, a Florida based company founded in 2014 as a multi-level marketing scheme. She is pictured with a check from the company
The Houston influencer whose naked body was found dumped on the side of the road worked for a beauty company accused of being a pyramid scheme in a lawsuit. 
Alexis Sharkey, 26, was found ‘with no visible signs of injury’ by a city worker at the side of a road in Houston on November 28, less than 24 hours after she went missing. 
Her death remains a mystery with Texas officials saying a preliminary autopsy did not rule out foul play. There have been no arrests in connection to her death and her cause of death is yet to be determined.
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Now friends say the influencer, who had thousands of followers on Instagram, worked for hair and beauty brand Monat, a Florida based company founded in 2014 as a multi-level marketing scheme that sells shampoos, conditioners and creams.     
Friend Brittney Pember told Khou they met working for Monat. She said: ‘She worked her butt off to get to where she was and to see such success in a person who is just a couple years older than me, was absolutely incredible.’
Lauren Norling-Martin also works for Monat. She said: ‘She’s grown to be such a good friend to me. And I just can’t believe she’s gone. Without a doubt in my mind, foul play was involved, and this was a murder.’ 

Monat was accused of operating as a pyramid scheme by lawsuit filed in 2018. Multi-level marketing schemes like Monat are ‘akin to pyramid schemes’, The Guardian reported in 2019. 
They often have little to do with selling products to customers and everything to do with keeping a stream of new recruits – and their money – flowing into the business. 
Alexis described herself as a mentor for the company. She shared pictures and video using their products, at company events and posing with a giant check of her earnings.
Most of these companies allegedly, make their revenue from newly recruited salespeople purchasing expensive products [with the intent to resell] when they join the scheme.
However, the majority of individuals struggle to make any sales and end up losing money.  

The company, Monat, was accused of operating as a pyramid scheme by lawsuit filed in 2018, KTNV reports. It has also faced claims that those using the products experienced hair loss, balding and itching.
A spokesperson for the company said: ‘Alexis Sharkey was a warm, wonderful, and beloved, independent MONAT market partner. We are saddened by her tragic death and our thoughts are with her family and friends who loved her. Because this matter involves a police investigation, we are not going to say anything further. 
‘To be clear, we are a business approaching a billion dollars in sales with more than 2 million satisfied customers. We have more than 400,000 independent contractors who sell the most safe and effective premium hair care, skin care and wellness products throughout 5 markets worldwide by the direct selling channel.
‘Furthermore, each year we spend hundreds of thousands of dollars – over a million now in total — to conduct thousands of tests to ensure our products are safe and effective. We continue to engage third-party scientific testing laboratories to validate the safety and effectiveness of our products. In each case the findings are conclusive — our products are safe and effective for their intended purpose.’ 

In September the company was forced to sign an agreement promising to not conduct misleading sales and marketing practices. 
In a statement to Fox Business at that time Monat said: ‘We have been working closely with the Florida Attorney General’s office to address a number of matters related to customer relations and our rapid growth since 2017.
‘After a two-year process, we are pleased this matter has come to a close with no findings of wrongdoing.’   
Alexis described herself as a mentor for the company. She shared photos and video using their products, at company events and posing with a giant check of her earnings. 
Her sister Tobi Robinault told ABC13: ‘She was a smart, savvy, successful businesswoman. That’s how I want everyone to remember her.’ 

The circumstances leading to the naked body of Alexis Sharkey being found by a road side in Houston, Texas by a city sanitation worker, remains a mystery with Texas officials saying a preliminary autopsy did not rule out foul play.
The spotlight is very much being shone on her personal life with friends saying she feared for her life and was divorcing her 49-year-old husband of a year, Tom Sharkey.

Investigators are looking in to her personal life, with friends saying she feared for her life and was divorcing her husband of a year Tom, 49.
Tom has denied those claims, saying his wife was ‘stressed and unhappy’, while Sharkey’s mom said she is convinced her daughter was murdered.
Friends said she confided in them on a recent trip to Mexico that she feared for her life.
Investigations are ongoing as Houston police continue with the task of gathering video evidence from the area where the body was found, trying to piece together the events leading up to her death.