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Natalie Keepers, Second Virginia Tech Student Arrested By Police In Death of 13-Year-Old Nicole Lovell

By Grishma Giri
Published on: 07:19 PST, Jan 31, 2016

Blacksburg police announced the arrest of a second Virginia Tech student on Sunday in connection with the kidnapping and murder of 13-year-old girl Nicole Lovell.

Police arrested 18-year-old college student David E. Eisenhauer first on Saturday morning for felony abduction, while 19-year-old Natalie Marie Keepers of Laurel, Maryland, is the second person to get arrested with charges of improper disposal of a body, according to WSLS.

No reports regarding the involvement of Keepers in the murder have been provided by the police. No details regarding the celebrated student-athlete, Eisenhauer, have been detailed, as well.

According to Natalie Keepers’ LinkedIn profile, she is a sophomore engineering student who also interned for NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in summer 2014. She included that she planned “to hopefully get a job with the government or an Aerospace or Ocean Company.” Natalie Keepers’ also shares her photos frequently on social media through her personal account.

Nicole Lovell went missing in the Lantern Ridge area of Blacksburg, Virginia, on Wednesday around midnight. Her father, David Lovell, wrote on Facebook that he is devastated because of the loss of his child.

https://www.facebook.com/david.lovell.182/posts/1687410071500948

Two news conferences were held by the Blacksburg police on Saturday, the first of which announced the arrest of David Eisenhauer, while the second conference was to announce the news regarding the finding of the child’s remains in Surry County, North Carolina. Eisenhauer is charged with the first degree murder.

Lovell’s body was discovered at around 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon and the body was transported for a medical examination in Roanoke.

Police also confirmed that Eisenhauer and Lovell knew each other before she disappeared, and it was Natalie Keepers, his acquaintance, who helped him to abduct and kill her.

Here’s the full news release issued by Blacksburg police, as reported by WSLS.

“BLACKSBURG, Va. – Blacksburg Police have made a second arrest in the abduction and murder of Nicole M. Lovell, who went missing from her Blacksburg, Va., residence Jan. 27, 2016. Natalie M. Keepers, 19, is being held without bond at the Montgomery County Jail on one felony count of improper disposal of a dead body (Code of Virginia 18.2-323.02) and one misdemeanor count of accessory after the fact in the commission of a felony (Code of Virginia 18.2-19). Keepers, a Virginia Tech student from Laurel, Md., was arrested Sunday (Jan. 31) morning.

“On Saturday afternoon (Jan. 30), the four-day search for the missing 13-year-old Blacksburg girl came to an end. At approximately 4 p.m. Saturday, Virginia State Police located Nicole’s remains near Route 89, in Surry County, N.C. With the assistance of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, FBI Charlotte, N.C., Field Office, and the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office, her remains arrived early Sunday morning (Jan. 31) at the Office of the Medical Examiner in Roanoke, Va., for autopsy and examination.

“David E. Eisenhauer, 18, is also being held at the Montgomery County Jail without bond. The Columbia, Md., native was arrested Saturday on one felony count of first degree murder and one felony count of abduction.

“Based on the evidence collected to date, investigators have determined that Eisenhauer and Nicole were acquainted prior to her disappearance. Eisenhauer used this relationship to his advantage to abduct the 13-year-old and then kill her. Keepers helped Eisenhauer dispose of Nicole’s body.

“The investigation into Nicole’s abduction and death remains very active as investigators continue to pursue roughly 300 leads generated during the course of the past five days. The Blacksburg Police are being assisted in the investigation by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Christiansburg Police, City of Radford Police, Virginia Tech Police, Virginia State Police, ATF and FBI.

“Investigators are still encouraging the public to come forward with any information concerning Nicole Lovell, David Eisenhauer and/or, now, Natalie Keepers to contact the Blacksburg Police Department at 540-961-1150.
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“Lieutenant M.B. Albert”

Both Eisenhauer and Natalie Keepers are being held without bond by the police.

[Image via WTVR]

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