HOUSTON — Houston police have released surveillance photos of two persons of interest "wanted for questioning" in the death of a 12-year-old girl whose body was found in a north Houston creek early Monday.
The Medical Examiner's office said her cause of death was strangulation.
During a news conference Monday afternoon, police said someone called 911 a little after 6 a.m. about the child’s body. The victim was found in shallow water in a creek near West Rankin Road just west of the North Freeway, not far from where she lived.
HPD investigators said the girl, whose name hasn't been released, sneaked out of her family's apartment on Sunday.
On Tuesday evening, HPD released surveillance photos of the two men they hope to identify and question.
Police described the persons of interest as "two males of an unknown age, wearing baseball-style caps."
The identity of the victim is pending verification by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.
On Tuesday morning, Mayor John Whitmire released new details about the case during a city council meeting.
'Very, very bad, horrific circumstances'
According to Whitmire, the girl's mother last saw her around 10 p.m. Sunday when she put everyone to bed. He said the girl left home sometime between 10 p.m. and midnight.
The mayor said the victim was talking with her 13-year-old boyfriend on the phone that night.
“It appears that he last talked to her at a convenience store around midnight, heard her talking to two grown-ups," Whitmire said. "There will be a report issued shortly with very, very bad, horrific circumstances.”
The mayor also said the victim was raped and asked for prayers for the victim's family.
'Her little girl is gone'
"I have talked to this child's mother. She is devasted, her family is devastated," Acting Police Chief Larry Satterwhite said Monday. "Her little girl is gone."
Homicide detectives were working to learn if she was in contact with anyone before she left home.
"Looking into whatever communications could have happened," HPD Lt. Stephen Hope said. "We’re not sure how that was, but we have reason to believe the family did not know that she was leaving the house."
They hope the surveillance video will give them answers.
If you have any information about this case, you're asked to call Houston police at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 713-222-TIPS. There is a $5,000 reward for information about this case.