Colorado police confirmed that the body found in Arvada is that of the 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway who went missing from her Westminster home a week ago.
The dismembered body was discovered late Wednesday, about seven miles from where Jessica disappeared, in an open space at Pattridge Park in the Denver suburb of Arvada.
The park is located south of the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge that is known for its abandoned coal mines.
Westminster Police Chief Lee Birk said they are working in collaboration with the FBI to bring the perpetuator to justice.
"It is with a great deal of sorrow in my heart that I inform you that the body that was found in Arvada has been positively identified as Jessica Ridgeway", Birk said in a press conference. "There is a predator at large in our community. We cannot afford to jeopardize this investigation. Be mindful of the impact on Jessica's family. The mission has changed from a search for Jessica to a mission of justice for Jessica."
Jessica Ridgeway, a 4-foot-10-inch-tall, 80-pound girl, went missing as she took a short walk from her home to Witt Elementary School on the morning of Oct 5.
She was kidnapped, killed and dismembered before being dumped to an open space in Arvada. Her body was found after four days of massive search by the investigators and it took a couple of days to definitively identify her.
Latest reports indicate that police have converged on a home in Denver to investigate a possible person of interest in the Jessica Ridgeway investigation.
The investigating officers spent nearly 30 minutes in the house questioning the person. A woman, believed to be his mother, claimed that the officials have cleared him of suspicion.
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