I have talked to this child's mother and of course she is devastated. Her family is devastated, her little girl's gone. So we need your help. I'm gonna turn it over to the mayor and then I'm gonna turn over uh from there to Lieutenant Steven Hope and our homicide division to give you more details. But again, we are asking for your help. Mayor. Thank you, Chief that I um echo the Chiefs words of uh asking Houstonians to help us find the murderer of this 12 year old little girl found on one of our neighborhoods. I've spoken to her mother. She's devastated, actually holding out hope that it's not her daughter, which I'll let the lieutenant address the circumstances. I will say it makes me angry that we have dangerous criminals on the streets of Houston too often. We rearrest repeat violent offenders, but we won't rest. And this is an example of why public safety will continue to be our highest priority in my administration and working with HPD. Um Toughest thing I will ever do as mayor is call it the victim's mother and assure her that HPD its rank and file its leadership. The city is doing everything they can to find the perpetrator of this hideous crime. Horrible as a parent, a grandfather is just unimaginable. What the family is going through. I spoke with her. She's devastated and all you can do is depend on your faith and let the police do their work and have someone arrested as soon as possible. I could. Another another day, I will talk about why we need additional staffing and the issue of the repeat violent offenders. But today we're focused on this investigation and I yield to Lieutenant Hope. Hello, everyone. Thanks for being here this evening. I'm Lieutenant Hope with the Houston Police Department's Homicide division. I'm here to talk to you about an incident that happened around 6 a.m. this morning. Uh Citizen called 911 regarding a body seen in the shallow water of the bayou near 400 West Rankin Road in the Houston's North Belt area. Houston's homicide division along with the assistance of the Houston Department's dive team in the Harris County Medical examiner's office were able to recover that body out of the shallow water there. Harris County's medical examiner's office is completing an official identification of the victim, but we do have reason to believe that it's gonna be a 12 year old female that was snuck out of her uh residence late last night and eventually ended up in that waterway at 400 West Rankin Road. We're investigating the circumstances surrounding her leaving the residence and ending up being discovered they're deceased. There is surveillance video and the detectives are working diligently to follow up on the leads that they do have currently. But we are asking that anyone with any knowledge of this incident or any information surrounding this incident, please call and help our investigators find the perpetrator of this incident. They can contact the Houston Police Department's Homicide division at 713308 3600 or then call anonymously to the Houston crime stoppers at 713222 tips. 7132228477. Thank you again. And please help us out. Any questions, the girl at this point, I think it might help with people, right? So the juvenile victim, in this case, we're not gonna be releasing the name until the official uh identification of the victim. And even then circumstances surrounding this case might prevent us from doing. So, can you tell us, uh, you gave us the area where she was found if people were out in an area, where did you leave? And so she left uh an apartment complex actually pretty close to Rankin Road at the evening there and she was found in the small waterway bayou right next to Rankin Road. Uh Any time last night, a little bit after 10, anytime after 10 p.m. Do we think the location where her body was discovered was the location that she was killed. So the actual circumstances surrounding what her body's location was is still under investigation. And you can imagine with all the forensic evidence that would be needed, that's going to be taking quite a bit of time. And this is a very new scene. So we're taking, we're not going to assume one way or the other just yet deceased. How do we know whether injuries? So the actual nature of how her body was found is something that is under investigation. The medical examiner's office is going to be doing a very thorough look into it forensically and that does take a lot of time. I don't want to speak ahead of what they're gonna be finding or have, I guess it could. Um However, again, I don't want to step in front of what the medical designer office has to offer for us. So anytime a body is found in waterway, we will call for the dive team. This was shallow water, but it is their expertise to be able to go in and make sure that not only the body but any other evidence in that waterway would be found. You said this young girl uh snuck out of her house. Uh I guess what do you mean by that was communicating with someone online to your knowledge? So right now we have uh looking into whatever communications that could have happened. We're not sure how that was, but we have reason to believe that the family did not know that she was leaving the house. Correct? And we're, you know, saying murder here, we're saying homicide. Um, can you elaborate on why we think foul play? So 12 year old found in a waterway near the residence where she lives is in and of itself very suspicious. Um, and that's why we're kind of asking for people's help in this one. We, like I said, we're leaving that up to whatever information we can get in. Anything would be helpful to us. Um Chief or, or mayor, can you talk about the resources that are deployed or is there, you know, the number of people investigating this? So, uh the medical examiner's office, it has several people that came out and went around for forensic analysis. We did have our CS U team out there. We have our homicide detectives um working on it as well. So there's several entities that are working together and facet with this was the, so the actual nature of the body and the way she was as under investigation, we're still looking into how she was found. Can you say how far the body was found from her residence? Um I do not know the exact distance but it actually was very close. Yes. Is there any reason to believe that any time there might be a, I do not know yet. Are there any leads on any of this time? So right now, we're like, I said we're still looking into communications that were there and any other information that we could find from it? Uh There is surveillance video that we're reviewing as well. Um So any information from the public, any other information that you, anyone could help would be really, really helpful and she was never reported missing. She laughed. She was not reported missing though, race as a white female. All right, we'll take one more question. I mean, Mayor Whitmire, why did you decide to attend this briefing today? My concern uh for the family and to uh support HPD. Uh we were at a hurricane preparation press conference when we were notified. So this is where I felt like I needed to be. Um, I'm angry that, that we have uh circumstances that would lead to the loss of a 12 year old. I think any of us said if have Children, grandchildren, you just, uh, it's the worst horror for a family. And let me tell you what this is a somber, the headquarters that I walked into. Um, you know, uh, you have a fire chief here, police chief, all the support of our first responders. But this is a sad, sad moment for the city of Houston. So I'd ask everyone to keep the family in their prayers. Uh It's a very tough job on my part to call the mother and let her know that uh we're doing everything we can. So that's why I wanted to be here to support the family, the police and let Houstonians uh know that we're not going to rest until this is resolved. And uh all the uh bad actors will be held accountable. And also it's an opportunity for me to emphasize we need additional staffing HPD is stretched way too thin. Houston fire stretched too thin. So public safety will continue to be my highest priority. And that's why I'm here. I do it in Spanish and then of course, take your cheap Estamos or Orlando con Los Mios Deion sob caso with Tra the una una de dos Angel Contrada Muerta approx de la sei Cuarto de Manana in La Cuadra Cocis de la Calle West Rankin Road. Uh Nostro polic Fon Yamada, Elan Contra de Gracia. Menta F and N Royo and Elaria Detectives de la division. Miso tanto como Miros del equipo de buso is to be present for El Cuerpo Stamos Trahan con Laina del Medico Fen para terminar la causa de Muerte IEP So como deso Rita Talde Witmeyer. Com Fed Policia Sara White. Il Detective. Hope to Mundo Trajan en este caso to Mundo Queremos, Treo Verree Caso Lemos uh del publico Que Reen pesta familia que que Oren pesta familia. Iz algo sobre cao Esta en v Laria Salio Proxima Pensamos. Que de la la la la la la mis Tres. Tres, tres se sero o crime stoppers de Buen Noni Mae, I pueda Verona compa siete Tres dos. Dos dos te IE which is gracias and it is the moment of the Rasa Blanc. No, lo lo detective Complejo de Vives. Uno una una camera dear. Is, is Evi Via de La Okay Caves. Ok. Thank you. Can you give me your first name?
