Post by HOPE on May 4, 2005 21:41:07 GMT -5
Suspect in Yeadon teen's slaying in custody
Victim, an aspiring model, was ID'd through DNA
The suspect in the brutal murder of a 15-year-old aspiring model from Yeadon is in custody, according to Philadelphia police.
The bodily remains of Deanna "Dee Dee" Wright-McIntosh, 15, were found in a metal drum on Thursday in a vacant lot on 63rd Street near Arch in West Philadelphia. The body was so badly burned that DNA testing was needed to determine the identity.
"The suspect is in custody in one of the county prisons," said Philadelphia homicide detective Lt. Philip Riehl.
Riehl would not reveal the suspect's identity but said that the suspect had been arrested on unrelated charges before Thursday's discovery. The Delaware County District Attorney will hold a press conference tomorrow regarding the murder.
Wright-McIntosh, a Penn Wood High School sophomore who placed second in a recent modeling contest, was reported missing on Dec. 3. She was last reported seen after school with a friend at a nail salon near her Yeadon home.
On Thursday, Yeadon police and Philadelphia homicide detectives interrogated a witness, who led police to the vacant lot on 63rd Street, less than four miles from Wright-McIntosh's home. The witness is not suspected in the killing, police said.
Neighbors said the trash-strewn lot is a haven for drug users and prostitutes.
Police removed a green, 55-gallon drum containing Wright-McIntosh's remains and employed an arson dog to sniff the scene for evidence.
Lansdowne police later searched a home where they suspect the murder may have taken place.
On Saturday, Delaware County District Attorney Michael Green, along with the Yeadon and Lans-downe police chiefs, told Wright-McIntosh's mother that positive identification had been made.
"The remains inside the barrel were in fact Deanna," the district attorney told Darlene Wright, according to family spokesman Rev. Larry Patrick.
Hundreds of people have flooded Wright's home since the body of her only daughter was discovered.
"Up to 200 people at once," said Patrick, "with smiles, tears and lots of support."
Patrick is the pastor at Mount Olive Baptist church, where Wright-McIntosh sang in the choir. The church, at 37th Street near Wallace, was founded by Wright-McIntosh's grandfather T.H. Car-ter, in 1938.
"She will always be remembered for her ready smile, great wit and her love for her mother," said Patrick.
Patrick, who knew Wright-McIntosh her entire life, said, "She had the type of personality that she could become anything she wanted."
He cited her modeling, her gospel-singing and her poetry writing among her other accomplishments.
"She was a beautiful girl," he said.
Wright-McIntosh lived with her mother but was close to her father, Jim McIntosh, a retired FBI agent who served as spokesman for the Philadelphia office during the 1980s.
"The family is in constant prayer," Patrick said, noting that the holidays had been especially difficult.
"It was a struggle to get through each day."
I pray she is resting in peace.
Victim, an aspiring model, was ID'd through DNA
The suspect in the brutal murder of a 15-year-old aspiring model from Yeadon is in custody, according to Philadelphia police.
The bodily remains of Deanna "Dee Dee" Wright-McIntosh, 15, were found in a metal drum on Thursday in a vacant lot on 63rd Street near Arch in West Philadelphia. The body was so badly burned that DNA testing was needed to determine the identity.
"The suspect is in custody in one of the county prisons," said Philadelphia homicide detective Lt. Philip Riehl.
Riehl would not reveal the suspect's identity but said that the suspect had been arrested on unrelated charges before Thursday's discovery. The Delaware County District Attorney will hold a press conference tomorrow regarding the murder.
Wright-McIntosh, a Penn Wood High School sophomore who placed second in a recent modeling contest, was reported missing on Dec. 3. She was last reported seen after school with a friend at a nail salon near her Yeadon home.
On Thursday, Yeadon police and Philadelphia homicide detectives interrogated a witness, who led police to the vacant lot on 63rd Street, less than four miles from Wright-McIntosh's home. The witness is not suspected in the killing, police said.
Neighbors said the trash-strewn lot is a haven for drug users and prostitutes.
Police removed a green, 55-gallon drum containing Wright-McIntosh's remains and employed an arson dog to sniff the scene for evidence.
Lansdowne police later searched a home where they suspect the murder may have taken place.
On Saturday, Delaware County District Attorney Michael Green, along with the Yeadon and Lans-downe police chiefs, told Wright-McIntosh's mother that positive identification had been made.
"The remains inside the barrel were in fact Deanna," the district attorney told Darlene Wright, according to family spokesman Rev. Larry Patrick.
Hundreds of people have flooded Wright's home since the body of her only daughter was discovered.
"Up to 200 people at once," said Patrick, "with smiles, tears and lots of support."
Patrick is the pastor at Mount Olive Baptist church, where Wright-McIntosh sang in the choir. The church, at 37th Street near Wallace, was founded by Wright-McIntosh's grandfather T.H. Car-ter, in 1938.
"She will always be remembered for her ready smile, great wit and her love for her mother," said Patrick.
Patrick, who knew Wright-McIntosh her entire life, said, "She had the type of personality that she could become anything she wanted."
He cited her modeling, her gospel-singing and her poetry writing among her other accomplishments.
"She was a beautiful girl," he said.
Wright-McIntosh lived with her mother but was close to her father, Jim McIntosh, a retired FBI agent who served as spokesman for the Philadelphia office during the 1980s.
"The family is in constant prayer," Patrick said, noting that the holidays had been especially difficult.
"It was a struggle to get through each day."
I pray she is resting in peace.