Police have made an arrest in the extraordinarily violent killing of a teenage girl in 2016 — and the suspect is also accused of killing two children.
Bridget Shiel’s naked body, riddled with ‘exploding’ bullets, was found in an Atlanta Park in May 2016. The 19-year-old had been shot several times in the legs, back, and buttocks, according to ABC News. A witness reported seeing her at a gas station in a car with two men, and said she looked “unsettled,” police told the news station.
According to a report in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Shiel appeared to be in the car against her will.
Shiel was an aspiring model who was reportedly attending beauty school.
Bridget’s family reportedly told police that she had been trying to escape involvement with sex work and return to her native Washington, D.C.
On Thursday, Atlanta police announced in a press conference that they had arrested Christopher Spencer, 28, who is already in prison for murdering an elderly couple, and authorities believe he is also responsible for killing two children.
“Homicide investigators pursued numerous leads over the past two years, eventually finding enough evidence to charge Spencer,” Campos said.
It is not yet known how Shiel knew her attacker, or if further arrests are expected. Spencer is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
The news of the arrest comes on the second anniversary of the day Shiel’s body was found.
“Crime Stories” with Nancy Grace dedicated an episode to Shiel’s murder earlier this year.
A motive for the murder is not yet known.