The body of missing 11-year-old Audrey Cunningham was found in the Trinity River in Texas, authorities announced Tuesday.
Don Steven McDougall, 42, who is in custody without bond, will be charged with capital murder in connection with her death, Polk County District Attorney Shelley Seaton said at a news conference.
A case will be registered “based on all the evidence”, he said.
Sheriff Byron Lyons said suspect information sent by citizens, cellphone data and social media imagery led them to the body near Highway 59 in the county.
The sheriff said a local water authority lowered the water level in the river to help divers search for them. His body is at the disposal of a medical examiner, who will determine the exact cause and manner of death, he said.
Authorities said Cunningham had not been seen since leaving her Polk County home about 7 a.m. Thursday to catch a school bus.
But according to Polk County Sheriff’s deputies, she never boarded that bus or arrived at school that day.
An Amber Alert was issued for the 4-foot-1-inch child with blonde hair and blue eyes. On Thursday, he was wearing black pants, a black hoodie with white letters and black tennis shoes.
McDougall was called “one of the persons of interest” involved in the case when he was arrested Friday on suspicion of aggravated assault in an unrelated incident, authorities said.
Authorities said McDougal lived in a trailer behind Audrey’s home and was considered a family friend who would sometimes take the girl to the bus stop or school.
A small children’s backpack was found at the Lake Livingston Dam, not far from the Cunningham family home, authorities said. The Trinity River flows into the lake.
A $10,000 reward was offered for any information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the person responsible for Audrey’s disappearance.
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