UPDATE WEDNESDAY 12:12 pm- Prosecutors said Wednesday, criminal charges will be filed against a convicted sex offender suspected of murdering Chelsea King.
Paul Levikow, the spokesman for the District Attorney, did not specify the exact charges planned against John Albert Gardner III as the complaint is still being written. He said the charges will be revealed at Gardner’s 2:30 p.m. arraignment today.
Meanwhile, authorities said they are still trying to confirm the identity of a body found on Tuesday in a shallow grave on the south shore of Lake Hodges, a lake in the park where King was last seen.
County Sheriff William Gore said the body was likely Chelsea King.
Investigators are searching for a California teen today, a day after authorities arrested a man suspected of rape and murder in connection with her disappearance.
Police have been searching for Chelsea King, 17, since Thursday, when she went missing after going for a run in a park.
Over the weekend, some 1,400 volunteers and 120 law enforcement personnel searched Rancho Bernardo Community Park, especially around Lake Hodges where King’s car was found.
Investigators searching the San Diego Park found evidence that led to the arrest of 30-year-old John Albert Gardner of Riverside County, San Diego County Sherriff William Gore said.
Gore said investigators discovered physical evidence linking Gardner to the case. He has been booked for investigation of murder and remains in custody without bail. Prosecutors say they will decide by Wednesday whether to charge Gardner.
Gardner is from Lake Elsinore, according to the Megan’s Law website. He had to register as a sex offender because of a conviction for lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 the site said.
King’s parents say Chelsea is a straight-A student who ran cross-country and is active in her school’s peer counseling program.
The search for Chelsea King took to the internet where a Facebook page has generated about 24,000 fans. A web site was created at findchelsea.com.
Search Area for Missing Teen
