How Detectives Will ID The Little Girl In The Duffle Bag

LOS ANGELES, CA — A girl missing from Lancaster since Valentine's Day is not the same little girl whose body was stuffed in a duffle bag and dumped from the side of the road in Hacienda Heights, investigators announced Thursday. More than 48 hours after the little girl's body was found by county park workers, LA Sheriff's investigators still have no idea who she was. But an autopsy being conducted over the next day may shed light on her final moments.

There were no obvious signs of trauma to the girl, said Lt. Scott Hoglund.

"At this point, we don't have any leads. We don't have any idea of who this child is," the lieutenant said, calling it a "horrible, tragic case."

He said investigators do not know if the girl was alive or dead when she was placed inside the bag.

Authorities Thursday continued their investigation into the death of the girl believed to be between 8 and 13 years-old. Late Thursday morning, the sheriff's department reported that the victim is not Skylar Mannie, a 13-year-old girl who was last seen in Lancaster on Feb. 14.

"Investigators believe the victim was dumped at the location sometime during the late evening hours of Sunday March 3rd and discovered March 5 at 10 in the morning,"Hoglund said. "The victim was, in fact, found partially inside of a black roll away type duffle bag."

Dan Scott, a retired L.A. County sheriff’s sergeant told the Los Angeles Times the circumstances in this case are unusual because relatives who kill a child often bury or conceal the body.

“It is extremely rare to see a child’s body dumped,” he told the newspaper. “I cannot recall one in recent years in the region.”

Scott said investigators will likely scour databases for missing children and offenders' DNA while also pouring over security cameras from the surrounding community and attempting to track down the girl's clothes to the store they were purchased from. According to a Patch search, the girl's distinctive shirt matches a shirt made by The Children's Place.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's homicide detectives Wednesday released a composite sketch of the girl, along with photographs of her clothing. She was black, about 4 feet 5 inches tall and 55 pounds. She wore a pink long-sleeve top with the words "Future Princess Hero" and gray pants with pandas when her body was found.

"We don’t have any idea of who this child is," Hoglund said. "We are looking for any type of witnesses that may have been traveling that area, that may have seen a vehicle pulled over to the side...We are looking for any lead."

Authorities have reached out to schools and children's groups hoping someone will recognize the police sketch of the child.

Anyone with information on the case was urged to call the Sheriff's Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500, or Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.