Teen arrested after body of missing Moorhead girl found along river
File photo police tape. (FOX 9)
MOORHEAD, Minn. (FOX 9) - Moorhead police say a teenager has been arrested in connection to the death of a 14-year-old girl who was found along the Red River early Tuesday morning.
What we know
The Moorhead Police Department said 14-year-old Jaelyn Walker was reported missing in the area of 6th Avenue and Elm Street South on Monday night.
Officers arrived to help search for the missing girl, and while looking along the Red River early Tuesday morning, police say they discovered Walker’s body.
Further details about the teenager’s death are unknown, and police say they are still waiting for the preliminary autopsy report. Police did say Walker was the victim of a homicide.
The suspect
An 18-year-old man has been arrested in connection to Walker’s death, but he has not been officially charged as of Wednesday morning.
Police provided few details about the incident but said the two knew each other and that there was no known danger to the public.
Police ask for public's help
While the circumstances of what happened remain unclear, authorities were asking to speak with two drivers who may have given the suspect a ride on the evening of Aug. 19.
According to authorities, the suspect was picked up from an unknown location and driven to the 1700 block of 5th Avenue South in Fargo. A second person then drove him to the Moorhead Police Department, but where he was picked up is unknown.
Police also asked the public for help finding a cell phone with an orange case that could be anywhere between the crime scene in Moorhead and the address in Fargo, North Dakota. Police did not say whom the missing phone belonged to.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Red River Regional Dispatch Center at 701-451-7660.