Authorities have arrested a 17-year-old male in relation to the murder of 6-year-old Jenise Wright, who was reported missing Sunday, Aug. 3.

Jenise Wright Went Missing Sunday, Aug. 3

Wright was reported missing Monday, having last been seen by her parents Saturday night in bed. Wright’s parents told authorities they did not report her missing during the day on Sunday because Wright was allowed to wander around the mobile home community, and would do so often without parental supervision. However, when night began, the parents became worried and, after going door to door searching for their young daughter, called the sheriff’s office.

Wright lived with her parents in Steele Creek Mobile Home Park, a community that contains an estimated 100 homes. And, as the investigation progressed on Monday, Aug. 4, two other children living in the home, a 12-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy, were removed from the home by Child Protective Services.

17-Year-Old Male Arrested

Wright’s body was found Thursday in a wooded area near the Mobile Home Park, and her death was quickly ruled a homicide, though cause of death has yet to be released. Two days later, the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Department announced that they had made an arrest in Wright’s case.

“Today, a significant break has occurred in this homicide investigation… A suspect has been identified and he has been arrested,” said Lt. Earl Smith of the Kitsap County Sherriff’s Office at a press briefing.

Smith could only identify the suspect as a 17-year-old male because he is still considered a minor, but Smith confirmed that the suspect was booked Saturday on charges of murder in the second degree, manslaughter in the first degree and rape of a child in the first degree.

The suspect was apprehended as a result of forensic evidence, the nature of which the Sheriff’s Department refused to comment on. However, it is known that many, if not all members of the mobile home community had volunteered DNA samples to authorities, suggesting DNA evidence. Furthermore, the Sheriff’s Department did not deny that the suspect had perhaps been one of these people, calling it a “good assumption.”

The Sheriff’s Department also confirmed that the suspect resided in the mobile home community, but said they were not sure if the suspect knew the victim. Investigators were finishing up their work on Sunday, collecting statements and going over details to ensure they had a solid case.

“We’re just wrapping everything up. There’s still a lot to do, but now the focus is just dotting all of our I’s and crossing all of our t’s and handing the case off to prosecutors,” said Kitsap County Sheriff spokesman Scott Wilson.