Adrionna Williams would’ve been three next month.
But the 2-year-old girl’s body was found under puzzling circumstances, her life lost “before she even knew she had one,” one neighbor said.
On Sunday night, Adrionna was seen around 6:30 p.m., WPXI reported. By 7:05 p.m. her worried family reported her missing.
Forty minutes later, a woman walking her dog found her body in a shallow ravine in nearby suburb Swissvale, but could’ve easily missed it. She only spied the child’s leg, which was barely visible, PennLive added.
“Nothing noticeably, no trauma or anything like that. A slight abrasion on her face and that was it,” said Swissvale Chief Greg Geppert.
Officials are investigating her death as a homicide , and performed an autopsy Monday, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. They will conduct tests throughout the week to determine her cause and manner of death.
“We’re as curious as everybody else to try to get it solved,” the chief continued. “It’s very upsetting to us.”
Investigators have lined up a few facts. The 2-year-old was discovered two-and-a-half miles from her home, a distance Andrionna couldn’t have walked on her own. They believe the toddler was placed there, but not killed where she was found. The spot has not been identified as the crime scene, and detectives think she died somewhere else.
Authorities also discount the theory that a stranger abducted and killed her, as there are no signs that a predator is lurking in the area, targeting kids. The family asserts that the 2-year-old “walked away from the house,” a claim “that is absolutely being investigated by the county police.”
So far, no suspects have been identified or charges filed, NBC Philadelphia added. Family and friends are being interviewed as investigators try to figure out what happened during the last hours of her life, according to the Associated Press.
The road nearby the ravine has been closed.
LATEST – Homicide of Adrionna Williams, 2, shocks community; a vigil was held in her memory. #wpxi pic.twitter.com/fawkNI6vw2
— Joe Holden (@JoeHoldenCBS3) June 16, 2015
Meanwhile, neighbors have formed a vigil to mourn the child, many of whom didn’t know her, but still wanted to express their grief. One woman, Taz-he Dean, was distraught.
“This little girl was only 2 years old, and she didn’t do anything to anybody. Why would they ever do something like this to a little girl?”
[Photo Courtesy Twitter]
