Who was Audrii Cunningham, where did police find her and what is known about the possible suspect?

A tragic story out of Texas this week where authorities have confirmed finding the body of 11-year-old Livingston native Audrii Cunningham.

An amber alert was issued for the young girl on 16 February after she never made it onto her school bus Thursday morning.

Audrii’s body was recovered in Trinity River in Livingston, close to the US Highway 59 bridge. As the authorities continue to build their case, they are offering a $10,000 reward to anyone with useful information. Evidence continues to be collected and examined, with authorities suspecting that a child’s backpack that was recovered close to where Audrii’s body was found belonged to her.

A suspect has been arrested

The suspect named by authorities is forty-two-year-old Don Steven McDougal, who had been considered a friend by the family. McDougal was arrested on Friday for aggravated assault, not in connection to Audrii’s disappearance. However, investigators quickly put him on their suspect list, and during a press conference, Polk County Sheriff Byron Lyons said he believed he was the last person to see Audrii.

Lyons mentioned to the media that the family had said that on “some occasions [...] he did drop her off or take her to school if she missed the bus.” While McDougal had remained in police custody, he had not made any confessions. McDougal was a friend of the family who lived in a camper on their property, meaning Audrii likely trusted him.