Human remains were reportedly discovered on Saturday amid an ongoing search for a Pennsylvania woman who vanished two weeks earlier.
WPVI reported that the remains were located behind an abandoned school near the Awbury Arboretum in Germantown. Throughout the week, police looked in the area for Kada Scott, 23, and had zeroed in on the school after finding no sign of her at the arboretum, a 55-acre property.
According to WCAU, the remains were in a shallow grave in a wooded area. Philadelphia Police Department John Stanford said a tip they received on Saturday led them to where the remains were located. The remains appear to be a week old or less, he also said.
Stanford said they had searched the school earlier this week, but the woods made the search difficult.
“[The tip] was very specific as to detailing us and directing us to a specific location in the wooded area [near the school],” he explained, per the Philadelphia Inquirer.
On Wednesday, police arrested Keon King, 21, in connection with Scott’s disappearance. Philadelphia police believe King was the last person with Scott before she vanished on October 4.
On October 4, Scott left early from her overnight shift at a nursing home. Cell phone data allegedly indicated that King was traveling with Scott’s phone that night before it was turned off. Scott’s car was found in the nursing home’s parking lot.
Philadelphia Police Captain John Craig said Scotthas no history of disappearing, and her co-workers did not notice anything out of the ordinary before she went missing. However, Craig also claimed that Scott told her family about someone harassing her over the phone shortly before she vanished.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that King was charged twice in the past year for assaulting an ex-girlfriend. While he was accused of kidnapping the woman and choking her in a vehicle, prosecutors dropped both cases after she did not appear in court.
In light of his latest arrest, Assistant District Attorney Ashley Toczylowski refiled the prior kidnapping charges against King. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Toczylowski’s office did not handle the previous kidnapping case involving his ex-girlfriend.
Police previously searched the Awbury Arboretum but said they found no sign of Scott. However, a law enforcement source told WTXF that Wednesday’s search of an abandoned school near the arboretum led to Scott’s phone case and a card with her name on it. The school is about two and a half miles from Scott’s job.
WCAU reported that King also has pending charges for driving away from a police officer during a traffic stop and driving without a license. Those trials are scheduled to begin in November and December of this year.
Regarding Scott’s disappearance, King is charged with kidnapping for ransom, false imprisonment, criminal use of a communication facility, stalking, recklessly endangering another person, and tampering with physical evidence. His bail is set at $2.5 million.
On Friday, Scott’s family announced a $12,000 reward for information that leads to her safe discovery.
“I need my daughter home,” Scott’s father said. “That’s the only thing I’m looking forward to.”
This story is developing.
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[Feature Photo: Philadelphia police]
