14 DAY TRIAL // 12-year-old Autumn Pasquale from New Jersey has been declared dead. She had been missing since Saturday, when she left home for a bike ride. Yesterday, at 10 p.m., police in Clayton, Gloucester County, N.J., found her body in a recycling container.
Autumn left her home in Clayton on Saturday, at around 12:30 p.m., and she headed for a friend's house, nearby. Parents reported her missing by 9:30 p.m. the same day, philly.com reports.
Search parties were looking for the girl, Autumn Pasquale, of Clayton, N.J., as hundreds of community volunteers gathered to help the FBI and local police look for the girl. They couldn't reach her by phone, as it was disconnected.
"It's not like her. [...] She would have been home 11 o'clock this morning if she slept over a friend's house," Autumn's father, Tony Pasquale, had explained.
Autumn died a week before her 13th birthday. The details of her gruesome story have not been made public yet. However, Gloucester County Prosecutor Sean F. Dalton has confirmed that the body is that of Autumn's, in a press conference.
"This is a very sad day for the Pasquale family. [...] Our hearts go out to the family and to all the residents of Clayton who stood together in support of this young girl," Prosecutor Sean F. Dalton stated.
The location of the find has not yet been disclosed. Law enforcement officials are now conducting a criminal investigation. An autopsy is set for today, which may lead to whoever took Autumn's life.
The first 48 hours are critical in this situation, as the case of Whitney Heichel has showed us these last few days. The 21-year-old barista from Clackamas County, Oregon was found dead a few days after she disappeared on her way to work. She had been murdered just hours after being kidnapped.