Texas police in Livingston say a person of interest in Audrii Cunningham’s disappearance acknowledged leaving her home with her but is not being fully cooperative in the ongoing search to locate her.
First responders from multiple agencies are currently scouring Lake Livingston and the Trinity River as part of the efforts to find the missing 11-year-old.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, an AMBER Alert was issued by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on February 15, after Audrii didn’t show up at her school and failed to board her bus that morning.
On Saturday, the Texas Department of Public Safety identified 42-year-old Don Steven McDougal, who lives in a trailer behind the home where Cunningham lives with her father, as a “person of interest” in her disappearance.
Also on Saturday, authorities announced that a dark blue Chevrolet Suburban was a “vehicle of interest.” Police “have control” of the SUV but want to speak with anyone who may have seen it in recent days.
McDougal was arrested late Friday night and booked into the Polk County Jail on unrelated aggravated assault charges. McDougal’s criminal record includes a 2007 conviction for enticing a minor.
Update on the search for Audrii Cunningham:
Investigators believe the 2003 dark blue Chevrolet Suburban (pictured) is a vehicle of interest in the search for the 11-year-old Polk Co. resident.
Report tips to Polk Co. Sheriff's Office at 936-327-6810 or https://t.co/uCnY62S7Ww. https://t.co/OTPcRIRdGv pic.twitter.com/FrjwUBKnuH
— TxDPS – Southeast Texas Region (@TxDPSSoutheast) February 17, 2024
“Investigators have given McDougal, who was a who was arrested Friday on an unrelated charge, several opportunities to cooperate,” Lt. Bruce Cummings with the Texas Department of Public Safety said Monday, according to NBC 6. “And we remain hopeful that he will begin helping in this case.”
“Yes, I am hoping that she yet is still alive, and we’re gonna work just as hard to make sure that we do everything that we can to try to bring her home.”
When asked why Cunningham hasn’t been charged in connection with Audrii’s disappearance, Polk County Sheriff Byron Lyons said they don’t want to charge him prematurely so that the charges, when and if they do come, will hold up in court.
“Yes, he may have been the last person with her, and yes she is missing at this time, but we want to make for sure that whatever evidence that we collected and placed on an affidavit today will hold up in court later,” Lyons said.
“It does us no good to prematurely charge him now and it gets thrown out of court because we were moving too fast. So please, understand, as we move carefully through this because Audrii deserves this. She deserves us taking our time.”
Meanwhile, the reward for information leading to Audrii has increased to $10,000.
Audrii is described as a white female who stands 4-foot-1 and weighs around 75 pounds. She has blonde hair and blue eyes and was last seen wearing black pants, a black hoodie with white lettering and black high-top shoes.
To report information about Audrii or her location, call the Polk County Sheriff’s Office at 936-327-6810.
For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast. Listen to the latest episode:
[Feature Photo: Audrii Cunningham/Polk County Sheriff’s Office]
Additional reporting by KC Wildmoon
