Man arrested in connection with 2013 killing of Leah Anderson released
Release comes just a day after police hailed arrest as 'significant'
Police have released a 23-year-old man they arrested yesterday in connection with the unsolved killing of 15-year-old Leah Anderson in Gods Lake Narrows, Man.
The news comes just a day after RCMP announced the arrest, calling it "significant."
"Investigators have been working since Jan. 6, 2013, to get justice for Leah. She was a young girl with a bright future, which was violently stolen from her," said Sgt. Todd Doyle of the RCMP's major crime services in a news release Wednesday.
- Missing and murdered: The life and mysterious death of Leah Anderson
- Leah Anderson's killer was male, known to girl, RCMP say
"This is far from over, but this is a good day," he wrote in the statement.
Josie Anderson, Leah's aunt, told CBC News Wednesday that she was unsure how she felt about the arrest.
"Shocked, in disbelief, but it is what it is, right? I mean justice will be justice, right?"
Leah was 15 when she went missing in January 2013.
Her body was found two days later on a snowmobile trail in the remote northern Manitoba community of around 1,300 people.
She had been beaten and disfigured so violently that people initially believed she had been mauled by dogs.
Police didn't release the name of the suspect arrested, saying charges had not been laid. Last week police said Anderson's killer was known to her.
RCMP said Wednesday police assembled a list of suspects and then narrowed it down with the help of the community. Police didn't elaborate on why the suspect was released Thursday.
"We continue to encourage anyone, particularly people living in the community of Gods Lake Narrows, who has information related to Leah's death to contact RCMP," spokesperson Tara Seel said in an email.