A father in Florida has been charged with the murder of his daughter, almost two years after he reported her missing.
According to a press release issued by the Tallahassee Police Department (TPD) on Friday, March 11, Andrew Wiley, 36, was taken into custody on “charges of second-degree murder” in relation to the death of his 12-year-old daughter, Lori Paige.
The announcement followed a “comprehensive and exhaustive 22-month investigation” into Lori’s disappearance, according to the news release.
On June 3, 2023, Wiley reported Lori missing, according to the police. According to authorities, Wiley stated at the time that his daughter had gone out with her backpack while he was at work some time during the night.
Digital evidence eventually led detectives to “a remote, brush-covered area of Thomas County, Georgia, known locally as a plantation” where her remains were eventually discovered on April 5.
Before a “prescribed burn that cleared heavy brush,” police stated, “multiple searches” of the area in “early 2024” produced no results.
When authorities discovered “more inconsistencies” in Wiley’s testimony and “new information about his relationship with Lori” surfaced, the inquiry turned to Wiley in March 2024.
This came one month after officials discovered “questionable internet searches about remote areas with bodies of water in Alabama and Georgia among other things” after forensically analyzing a phone that was taken from Wiley’s home on February 2, 2024.
The TPD claimed that after following “hundreds of leads across state lines” in the summer of 2023 and the first few months of 2024, they started to notice discrepancies with Wiley’s account.
“I told you two years ago we would never give up. I told you two years ago we would find Lori and we would bring her home,” TPD Chief Lawrence Revell said at a press conference in the afternoon.
“I told you two years ago that we would find who did this and we would arrest them and bring them to justice. And today, I stand before you to tell you we have done just that,” Revell added.
The case, he continued, has “deeply impacted our community for nearly two years.”
“Lori deserved a safe home and a full life. While today’s arrest will never bring her back, it does bring us one step closer to justice,” he stated.
Source: People
