USA: Police find seven bodies in the US state of Oklahoma

2023-05-02 05:09:44

USA

Police are looking for two missing teenagers – and find seven bodies

While authorities are still reluctant to identify the bodies, the father of a previously wanted 16-year-old said she was among the dead. She was reportedly spotted with another girl in the company of a convicted sex offender.

published2. May 2023, 05:09

Some of the victims went to Henryetta High School, which is not scheduled to close for now to allow students access to meetings with mental health experts and clergy.

IMAGO/USA TODAY Network

• In the rural area of ​​the US state of Oklahoma, the police have made a grisly discovery.

• She discovered seven bodies.

• Including the alleged perpetrator, who was convicted of rape 20 years ago.

• The police were actually looking for two missing girls – they are also said to be among the victims.

Seven bodies have been found in a search for two missing teenagers in the US state of Oklahoma. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation confirmed this on Monday. The grisly find was made during a search of a rural property near the town of Henryetta, spokesman Gerald Davidson said. The community with around 6000 inhabitants is located about 145 kilometers east of Oklahoma City.

A notice was issued earlier Monday regarding the search for a 14-year-old girl and a 16-year-old girl. The two may be in danger, it said. They were reportedly spotted with a convicted sex offender. Davidson said the bodies would need to be forensically identified. However, the search for the young people or the relevant convicted man is no longer being carried out.

“We’ve had our share of problems and concerns, but this is pretty bad,” said Okmulgee County Sheriff Eddy Rice. He declined to comment on the identity of the dead, where exactly they were found and whether weapons were seized. “We believe there is no other threat to the community,” he said.

Convicted sex offender

According to prison records, the man the youths were traveling with was convicted of rape in 2003 and released in October 2020. According to court documents, he was due to appear in court on Monday on suspicion of soliciting sexual activity from a minor and possession of child pornography. A request for comment to the man’s lawyer in the case initially went unanswered.

The 16-year-old’s father told the KOTV television station that one of the bodies found was his daughter. She was an outspoken person who was chosen to be the beauty queen at Henryetta and was scheduled to compete at a national level beauty pageant in Tulsa in July. ‘And now she won’t because she’s dead. She’s gone,” he said.

Henryetta Public Schools said in a Facebook post that they are mourning the loss of several members of the student body. After considering what would be best for the students, it was decided not to close the school in the coming days and to allow students access to meetings with mental health experts and clergy.

Are you underage and affected by sexualised violence? Or do you know a child who experiences sexualized violence?

You can find help here:

Police by canton

Kokon, counseling center for children, adolescents and young adults

Castagna, counseling center for sexual violence in children and adolescents

Online Opferberatung

Advice centers of Victim Support Switzerland

Pro Juventute, advice for children and young people, tel. 147

Are you a pedophile yourself and do not want to become a criminal? You can get help from Forio, Beforemore and at the UPK Basel.

(DPA/roy)