Body of 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham found in a Texas river; man ...
Audrii Cunningham murder suspect charged with Capital Murder
Polk County DA Shelly Sitton says that based on the evidence, an arrest warrant is in progress for Don Steven McDougal, 42.
Fox - 26 Houston
The body of 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham was found in a river Tuesday after the little girl had been missing from a small Texas town for five days, and authorities say they plan to file charges against a man in the case.
“My heart aches with this news," Polk County Sheriff Byron Lyons told reporters at a news conference announcing the tragic discovery. "I express with my deepest sympathies and condolences to everyone who knew, who cared for and loved Audrii. We will continue to process the evidence that has been gathered to ensure justice for Audrii."
The girl's body was found in the Trinity River along U.S. 59, he said. She had been missing since Thursday after failing to make it on the on the school bus in the small town of Livingston, about 70 miles northeast of Houston.
Lyons said the information gathered in the criminal investigation “is substantial.”
Here's what we know about Audrii and the man police plan to charge in her death.
Man to face charges in connection with Audrii’s death
District Attorney Shelly Sitton said that law enforcement was in the process of preparing the “appropriate arrest warrant” for 42-year-old Don Steven McDougal, who was supposed to be dropping Audrii off at the school bus the morning she disappeared.
“At this time, we believe the appropriate arrest warrant is going to be for capital murder in the death of Audrii Cunningham,” Sitton said. "I understand that this is a very difficult time for Audrii’s family and for our community."
USA TODAY could not find an attorney listed for McDougal, who was being held at Polk County jail for an unrelated felony charge of aggravated assault on Friday.
"We do believe at his point he was the last person who seen her," Lyons previously said about McDougal.
McDougal had been speaking with investigators, but law enforcement declined to share how involved McDougal was in locating Audrii's body.
Who was Audrii Cunningham and how did police find her?
Audrii Cunningham lived with her family in a lakeside community on the eastern shores of Livingston Lake.
Lyons said that investigators were able to zero in on the location of Audrii's body using cellphone records, videos and some information they received from McDougal.
Where is Livingston, Texas?
The town, which had a population of just over 5,600 during the last census, is in Polk County about 100 miles west of the Louisiana state line.
Livingston is just over 46 miles south of Lufkin, the largest city in Angelina County.
The small town is where a hero couple made national news last year after they rescued a 9-month-old baby abandoned in a shed.
'Little dress and no diaper' Texas 'hero' couple rescues baby abandoned in shed
When did Audrii Cunningham disappear?
Audrii was last seen at 7 a.m. on Feb. 15 when she left her home to catch the school bus.
Her parents reported her missing after she did not get off the bus on Thursday afternoon.
School officials told investigators that the bus did not pick her up and she did not report to campus.
Where was Audrii's backpack found?
Over the weekend, the Texas Department of Safety officials announced they found a backpack belonging to Audrii and the department identified a person of interest in her disappearance.
On Saturday, Polk County sheriff's Lt. Craig Cummings said officials found Audrii's Hello Kitty backpack near a dam at Lake Livingston, the Austin American-Statesman, part of the USA TODAY NETWORK, reported.
Cummings identified the person of interest as McDougal.
During a press conference Monday, Lyons said McDougal lives in a trailer on the family’s property and sometimes took the girl the bus stop and to school if she missed the bus.
According to the sheriff's office, investigators believe that a dark blue 2003 Chevrolet Suburban, belonging to McDougal, was involved in the disappearance.
The department had been asking the public for help in reporting any sightings of the vehicle on Thursday or Friday.
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Contributing: Fernanda Figueroa with the Austin American-Statesman
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.