Authorities searching for two missing teenagers on a rural Oklahoma property discovered Monday the corpses of seven peopleincluding the boys’ suspected remains and a convicted sex offender who was wanted with them, the local sheriff said.
Okmulgee County Sheriff Eddy Rice said the state coroner will need to confirm the identities of the victims, but “we think we’ve found the people.”
He said the bodies were believed to include those of 14-year-old Ivy Webster and 16-year-old Brittany Brewer, along with Jesse McFadden, the perpetrator the boys were traveling with, authorities said.
“We’re not looking anymore,” Rice said. “We believe we have found everything we were looking for this morning. Our hearts go out to family and friends, school mates and everyone in between.”
The police chief refused to give details of the young women’s deaths or other information about the gruesome discovery.
The bodies were found during a search near the town of Henryetta, a town of about 6,000 located about 90 miles east of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokesman Gerald Davidson said.
The disappearance of the girls
at the beginning of the day a missing person in danger alert had been issued by the two teenagers before it was cleared Monday afternoon by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
The ad on Webster and Brewer said they had apparently been seen traveling with McFadden, who he was placed on the state sex offender registry.
Prison records from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections administration show that McFadden was convicted of first-degree rape in 2003 and released in October 2020.
Court records indicate that McFadden was due to appear in court Monday for the start of a jury trial on charges of offering payment for prostituting a minor and possession of child sexual abuse materials. A message sent Monday evening to McFadden’s attorney in that case was not immediately returned.
Brittany Brewer’s father told KOTV in Tulsa that one of the bodies discovered was that of his daughter.
“Brittany was an outgoing person. In fact, she was selected for the Miss Henryetta pageant…which was held in July for the Miss National pageant in Tulsa. And now she’s not going to make it because she’s dead. She’s gone . ” Nathan Brewer complained.
During a vigil Monday night, Brewer told hundreds of people, “This is a parent’s worst nightmare, and I’m living it.”
She said her daughter dreamed of becoming a teacher or a veterinarian. “I’m just lost,” she added.
Schools closed for mourning
The umbrella organization for the Henryetta Public Schools has posted on Facebook and on its website that they are closed due to the loss of their students.
“Our hearts are heavy and we have been considering what would be best for our students in the days ahead,” the statement read.
Officials advised that the college would be in session and mental health professionals and clergy would be available to counsel students. But they said they would understand if families wanted to keep their children at home instead of sending them to school.
In another case in Okmulgee County, the bodies of four men were found Oct. 14 in the Deep Fork River in Okmulgee, a city of about 11,000 people located about 40 miles south of Tulsa. Joseph Kennedy, 68, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in that case.
Source: AP
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.