NBC New York – Police have arrested a 20-year-old Maine man in connection with the death of a 14-year-old girl whose naked, charred body was found on a Brooklyn beach in January, authorities said.
Christian Ferdinand, of Limestone, Maine, was charged Thursday with second-degree murder in the death of Shaniesha Forbes. A medical examiner had determined Forbes was smothered to death.
theGrio: Body of Shaniesha Forbes, 14, identified after being discovered on Brooklyn beach
She had attended the Academy for Young Writers in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. She disappeared two days before her body was found face up on the beach, with burns to her legs, arms and hands.
A law enforcement official told NBC 4 New York that investigators also located a kerosene can and signs of a bonfire nearby.
Police say Forbes and Ferdinand knew each other, but they did not elaborate on the relationship. Information on an attorney for Ferdinand wasn’t immediately available. He’s in NYPD custody.
Click here to read more.