Anderson had not been charged in the homicide, which occurred on Saturday, Aug. 20.
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He booked into the jail about 10 p.m. Saturday on suspicion of first-degree murder and kidnapping charges, according to the jail’s log.
That was the last time she saw Alayna.
Alayna’s mother, Kayla, put the child to bed at 2 a.m. Saturday.
Anderson is accused of driving Ertl away in her father’s vehicle, with her dad’s cellphone still in the auto, officials said.
“We did everything we could today to try to find her safely and obviously that didn’t happen”, Meeker County Sheriff Brian Cruze told NBC station KARE on Sunday. He had previously been at the Ertl residence and had stayed overnight previously, according to Cruze. Alayna weighed 45 pounds and was described as having short, sandy blond hair. Police found Mr Anderson alone in the wooded area, about 40 metres from his cabin, a statement from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety stated.
Twenty-five-year-old Zachary Anderson, of Coon Rapids, is being held in jail in connection to the weekend death of Alayna Ertl. Alayna’s father’s white GMC Sierra truck was also missing with his cell phone inside.
Eight hours after she vanished, Alayna’s remains were found in a wooded, swampy area, officials said. They are employed by Vannguard, a multistate company that locates underground utility lines.
Authorities pinged Matt Ertl’s cellphone at 9 a.m., since it had been in his truck when it was allegedly taken, but the device was turned off shortly thereafter, cops said. The park is located in Meadowbrook Township in southern Cass County, about 35 miles northwest of Brainerd.
A preliminary autopsy said that the little girl died from “homicidal violence”, the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office said.
The Watkins, Minnesota home where Alayna Jeanne Ertl was last seen early Saturday morning, August 20, is pictured Monday morning.
A search of online court records has revealed Anderson’s only run-ins with law enforcement have been over relatively minor traffic violations.
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Tom Ertl, the funeral home’s director and a second cousin to Matt Ertl, said he’ll be meeting with Alayna’s parents on Monday to make arrangements. It had already raised more than $14,000 in just over one day.
