Utah officials arrested a teenage boy who lured a 12-year-old girl into an open field near her suburban Salt Lake City home and slew her there.
No cause of death for Kayley Vijil has yet been revealed, but investigators dismissed speculation that it was from either a gunshot wound or stabbing, and otherwise didn’t elaborate on a motive for the murder.
"There was some sort of dialogue that enticed her to come outside of her home," is all a police spokeswoman has so far confirmed.
She said it is at least the second known occasion that the victim’s 15-year-old killer attempted to lead the child away from her family, but this time the boy evidently asked for and was given permission by the girl’s mother.
"We have at least one other incident that appears to be the same individual, using the same dialogue, to attempt to get an 11-year-old girl to come out, but her parents intervened."
When her daughter did not return promptly as promised, the mother enlisted officers parked at a neighborhood convenient store to help search for the missing girl -- by that time Kayley had been gone approximately 90 minutes.
After a brief search, they found her dead in a grassy area not far from the Vijil residence, and the juvenile Person Of Interest in the girl’s disappearance then became the prime suspect in her killing and was taken into custody.
Prosecutors declined to press any charges against the victim’s mother for permitting the deadly liaison however, because “this isn't about parenting," the chief of police insisted. "What we're investigating is the death of a 12-year-old girl and we need to stay focused on that," he said.
The accused teen’s name has not been released due to his youthful offender status.
