A Florida girl was brutally murdered on a trail at Cypress Lakes Preserve early Thursday, authorities in Hernando County said.
A passerby found the body of the teenage girl just before 9:40 a.m. on Thursday and called police.
Investigators determined the girl died from homicidal violence and learned that the victim matched the description of a young lady who had left her home around 1:30 a.m. that night.
“We were relatively confident almost immediately that she went to go meet an individual who was likely the person who killed her,” Sheriff Al Nienhuis said.
The sheriff said the murder involved violence and was carried out using an “edged weapon.”
“It was nothing short of very violent,” the sheriff described.
Cameron Cubel, 16, was arrested on Friday on suspicion of murder in connection to the girl’s death.
“We were relatively confident this was not a random act and, because she did sneak out in the middle of the night to meet with one or more individuals, we are confident that she likely knew the killer,” Nienhuis said.
“This individual and the victim have known each other in the past.”
