Abbiegail Smith, 11, found dead behind apartment days after reported missing

Only 15 hours after her mother reported that she was missing, an 11-year-old New Jersey girl was found dead behind an apartment complex.

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Only 15 hours after her mother reported that she was missing, an 11-year-old New Jersey girl was found dead behind an apartment complex.

According to authorities, Abbiegail Smith was found dead on Thursday morning in “the back area” of the Hancock Arms Apartments, which is where she lived with her mother. Her death is now being investigated as a homicide, and officials said that they did not believe any of her immediate family members were involved in her death.

Smith was last seen in her apartment on Wednesday at around 7:45 p.m., and she was reported missing by her mother, who a neighbor described as a strict parent who would not let her daughter wander on her own, only an hour later.

A teen neighbor identified as Andreas Erazo, 18, has since been arrested and charged in young Abbiegail’s murder. Erazo is expected to appear in court later Friday.

Authorities are awaiting autopsy results to determine how she died.

The Keansburg School community said it had “suffered a tragic loss on July 13″ in losing Smith, who was a student at Bolger Middle School.

“It is a very sad day for our school district. The thoughts and prayers of the entire Keansburg School community go out to the Smith family,” they said in a news release.

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