Arrest Made In Killing Of 11-Year-Old Keansburg Girl

KEANSBURG, NJ — The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office announced Friday morning they made an arrest in the killing of an 11-year-old Keansburg girl, Abbiegail "Abbie" Smith.

"We got him! Arrest made and charges filed in murder of 11-year old Keansburg girl. Andreas Erazo exp'd in court at 1:30 pm w J. English.," read the 10 a.m. Friday tweet from the Monmouth County Prosecutor.

Andreas Erazo, 18, is a neighbor of Abbie's; they both lived in the same small apartment building on Hancock Street in Keansburg. Erazo lived in an upstairs apartment. He is facing murder and weapons charges for her death and is expected to appear in Judge Richard English's courtroom at 1:30 p.m. Friday.

As previously reported, Abbie's body is currently with the Middlesex County Medical Examiner’s Office. The medical examiner is expected to conduct an autopsy of the girl to determine exactly how she died.

Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni vowed Thursday afternoon to find Abbie's killer. He said his officers were working around the clock to make an arrest. He also told nervous Keansburg parents that he believed Abbie's slaying was an isolated incident.

It was a remarkably fast turnaround: Abbie disappeared from her home just before 9 p.m. Wednesday night, and her mother called Keansburg police right away to report her missing. At 10:45 Thursday morning, prosecutor's detectives found her body buried behind her Keansburg apartment building, just steps from where she lived and could often be seen playing in the front yard. Police K-9s helped find her body. On Friday morning, a suspect was arrested.

"The family did everything correctly in this ... We have no reason to believe that the immediate family was at all involved in any type of foul play," Gramiccioni said Thursday. "They lost their lovely 11-year-old daughter, and we're really hopeful we can solve this crime for them."

Read: Missing Keansburg Girl, 11, Found Dead

Then, Patch covered the shock and anger in tiny Keansburg after her body was found in her backyard.

Read: Disbelief, Anger In Keansburg After Girl Found Buried In Her Backyard

Abbie was a student at Bolger Middle School in Keansburg, and she was on summer break when she was killed. In a statement, Keansburg school superintendent John Niesz said the town has "suffered a tragic loss. AbbieGail was a wonderful young girl who was a Titan through and through. She will be greatly missed by the entire Keansburg School District family, especially her friends and teachers."

Keansburg families and children held a candlelight vigil for Abbie on Thursday night outside her home.

Stay tuned for updates on this fast-developing story.