Wisconsin police have arrested a juvenile suspect in connection to the death of a 10-year-old girl whose body was found near a hiking trail Monday.
Authorities announced the arrest Tuesday, one day after the Chippewa Falls Police Department began a homicide investigation into the death of Iliana “Lily” Peters. Police did not publicly release the name or age of the suspect, and officers didn’t specify whether criminal charges had been filed.
“The suspect was not a stranger. The suspect was known to the victim,” Police Chief Matthew Kelm told reporters Tuesday. “We do not believe there is any danger to the community at this time.”
POLICE LAUNCH HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION AFTER FINDING GIRL’S BODY IN THE WOODS
Peters’s father reported her disappearance Sunday night when she didn’t return home from a visit to her aunt’s house, police said. Officers found a bicycle in the woods near a walking trail, where her body was later found and identified Monday.
Police did not reveal the cause of death or what evidence was collected from the scene that was linked to the suspect. However, Kelm said officers received more than 200 tips that were “critical to solving the case.”
In their investigation, authorities executed a search warrant to collect evidence and conduct interviews with those who live there, according to police.
“There is still much work to be done,” Kelm said. “Our thoughts continue to be with the family during this terrible time.”
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The police department issued a “high alert” warning to parents in the Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District, although authorities noted there was no need for a lockdown.
The investigation is still ongoing as police work to determine a motive, Kelm said. Multiple agencies are taking part in the investigation, including the Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation and the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratories.
