This missing persons case ended in the most horrible way.
Audrii Cunningham was last seen by her family on the morning of Thursday, February 15, on her way to school. However, she never made it onto the bus. Authorities in and around Livingston, Texas, where her father lives, mobilized to try to find the 11-year-old.
Unfortunately their investigation led them not straight to the little girl — but to a person of interest. Don Steven McDougal, a friend of Audrii’s father, lives in a camper behind the house where the Cunninghams live and reportedly had offered to walk Audrii to the bus stop that morning. He was arrested on an unrelated aggravated assault charge Friday. Turns out McDougal has an extensive criminal history, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety — including a 2008 charge of enticing a minor.
Using McDougal’s statements, as well as other sources, law enforcement were eventually able to find Audrii quickly. Polk County Sheriff Byron Lyons told reporters in a press conference Tuesday that law enforcement had the outflow of a reservoir of the Trinity River slowed, and when the water lowered the 11-year-old’s body could finally be seen.
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The medical examiner is currently working to determine her cause of death. However, some points are already clear to authorities. Polk County DA Shelly Bush-Sitton told reporters a capital murder charge is being prepared for McDougal.
So awful. R.I.P. Audrii. Be careful who you let watch your kids, y’all.
[Image via ABC News/YouTube/Polk County Sheriff’s Office.]
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