Saturday, September 24, 2011

Prosecutors have charged a Hispanic with killing his 8-year-old stepdaughter a day after her body was found in a remote area several miles north of their home

Salvador Carlos Lopez, 32, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Kerra Wilson, according to court documents. Investigators found Kerra's body in a rugged area of Sioux County - miles away from the family's home - after a rancher reported seeing something suspicious. A Nebraska State Patrol investigator said in court documents that Lopez acknowledged killing his stepdaughter after Kerra's body was found. Police spent two days searching for the girl after Lopez and her mother, Amada Lopez, reported her missing. Lopez had claimed he dropped her off at school, but investigators don't believe that. Authorities said that the last time the brown-haired, blue-eyed girl from Mitchell was seen by anyone other than her stepfather was when Kerra was with her grandparents. Mitchell Elementary School principal Kirk Kuxhausen said that Kerra did not appear in any of the security camera footage shot in the school or on the playground. Investigators weren't initially able to find the body because the surrounding terrain was so rugged. Investigators were still trying to determine when and where the girl was killed, Nebraska State Patrol Lt. Monica Bartling said. Kerra Wilson has three younger siblings who are all staying with family members.

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