An Indianapolis teenager whose badly burned body was found behind a house over the weekend died of asphyxiation, authorities said on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.
Dominique Allen, 15, was likely abducted and killed by someone she didn't know, police and family members said Tuesday, the AP reported.
Allen's body was found on Sunday afternoon by a homeowner in his backyard when he was walking his dog on the west side of the city, Indianapolis police said, according to the AP. He is not a suspect in the killing, police added.
One of Allen's sisters, Shenika Poindexter, issued a stern warning to whoever was responsible during a news conference Tuesday at the site where Allen's body was found, the AP reported. A small makeshift wooden cross was placed next to scorch marks in the grass, and decorated with flowers and stuffed animals.
Poindexter said her sister wasn't the type to talk to strangers or get in a car with someone she didn't know, according to the AP. The victim had been staying with another sister, Mareeka Allen, and was last seen on the sister's porch about 4 a.m. Sunday.
Allen's death was caused by asphyxiation and has been ruled a homicide, Alfarena Ballew, chief deputy coroner of Marion County, said on Tuesday, the AP reported.
Mareeka Allen said the crime was a "careless random act," and a detective investigating the case agreed, according to the AP.
"At this time, we believe it was random," Indianapolis Metro Police Detective Marcus Kennedy said, adding that Dominique Allen was dead before her body was burned, the AP reported.
The teenager was reported missing near midday on Sunday, about the time her body was found, Indianapolis police spokesman Christopher Wilburn said, according to the AP.
Investigators believe Allen was killed elsewhere and her body was brought to the backyard, Wilburn said, the AP reported. Detectives found her purse and shoes about a block away from her body, he said.
