A teen boy has been arrested on suspicion of killing a missing 8-year-old girl in Santa Cruz, California, and hiding her body in an outdoor recycle bin, officials said Tuesday.
Madyson "Maddy" Middleton was last seen Sunday in her apartment complex wearing a knee-high purple dress and black leggings while riding a white Razor scooter.
Her disappearance sparked an intensive search Sunday and Monday that involved search and rescue teams, a state K-9 unit, the FBI, and police reaching out to neighboring agencies.
The search came to an end Monday night when a detective again searched the apartment complex, including a recycle bin on the first floor of a parking lot of the building.
"Maddy's body was located within that recycle bin," Santa Cruz Police Chief Kevin Vogel said during a news conference Tuesday, adding that her body was hidden "in a way that was not obvious."
Maddy was apparently lured into the apartment of the 15-year-old boy, where he allegedly killed her before hiding her body.
Police suspect Maddy was already dead by the time she was reported missing Sunday.
The boy, who has not been identified because he is a minor, was "nearby when the body was found" and was interviewed by detectives overnight Monday, Vogel said.
Police did not disclose a motive for the killing, or how Maddy was killed.
Uncredited / AP
Vogel said evidence from the scene links the teenager to her death, and that the two knew each other because they lived in the same building.
Maddy likely followed the boy into his apartment willingly, Vogel said.
"She was then carried downstairs to the recycle bin where she was concealed," Vogel added.
Vogel said the 15-year-old is currently being held at a juvenile detention facility.
from BuzzFeed - USNews http://ift.tt/1Kwc1GI
No comments:
Post a Comment