Kentucky police say that the body of a missing 12-year-old girl was found and her father was hospitalised with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Authorities in Johnson County say they were called to the reports of an assault in the town of Van Lear, in the eastern part of the state.
When deputies arrived on the scene they found a man identified as Stacy Collins suffering from a gunshot wound and he was transferred to hospital for treatment.
During the investigation, they found that Mr Collins’ 12-year-old daughter, Stacia Leigh Collins, was missing.
Search teams scoured the area for the youngster and officials say that her body was found on Thursday evening in the Boons Camp area.
“Sadly, with public assistance, the juvenile was soon located, but was deceased. Remains were transported by the Johnson County Coroner’s Office to the Medical Examiners Office in Frankfort, KY.”
The Johnson County Coroner said the body was found in a “very, very remote” area on a road that is “hardly ever traveled by anyone”, according to The Lexington Herald-Leader.
The body was taken to the Medical Examiner’s Office in Frankfort, Kentucky for an autopsy.
No charges have been filed in the case.
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