A 13-year-old Florida girl whose family said she had a “beautiful spirit” was found dead near a nature trail more than a week after she was reported missing, authorities confirm.
Janessa Shannon’s body was “badly decomposed” when a pair of locals discovered her remains on July 12 in a wooded area by a trail at the Triple Creek Nature Preserve in Riverview, Florida, according to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Cristal Nuñez. Authorities are investigating her death as a homicide.
“We’re looking at anyone who could have been involved,” Nuñez said Tuesday.
She said Janessa’s body was too decomposed when it was found to show initial signs of injury or trauma. The cause of death is pending, according to the Hillsborough medical examiner’s office.
The young girl’s father, Nahshon Shannon, had reported her missing on July 3. He told authorities Janessa often snuck away from home and was recently grounded for doing so in order to see a boy, according to Nuñez.
“Her mother and father said she had run away several times in the past, but had always come back,” Nuñez said.
The sheriff’s office did not issue an AMBER Alert when she was first reported missing because there were no clear signs of abduction, Nuñez said.
Authorities said they were not ready to name a suspect. But Col. Donna Lusczynski, who oversees investigations at the sheriff’s office, said the department is actively investigating.
“Our primary function now at this time is to find Janessa’s killer,” Lusczynski said at a news conference Monday, according to the Miami Herald.
Janessa, whose parents live separately, usually stayed with her father, authorities said.
Nahshon Shannon, 37, told the Tampa Bay Times his daughter was a “beautiful spirit” and a “spirited young person.”
“I hope we find out exactly what happened to her and the person responsible,” he said.
The girl’s mother, Michelle Mosley, recalled to the Times the last conversation she had with Janessa. “I just explained to her … that I cared about her, loved her and I don’t want anything bad to ever happen to her,” she said.
News
My daughter left my 3 grandkids “for an hour” at my house but she never came back. 13 years later, she came with a lawyer and said I kidnapped them. But when I showed the envelope to the judge, he was stunned and asked: “Do they know about this?” I replied: “Not yet…
The gavel slams down like a thunderclap in the hushed Houston courtroom, shattering the silence that’s choked my life for…
MY SISTER AND I GRADUATED FROM COLLEGE TOGETHER, BUT MY PARENTS ONLY PAID FOR MY SISTER’S TUITION. “SHE DESERVED IT, BUT YOU DIDN’T.” MY PARENTS CAME TO OUR GRADUATION, BUT THEIR FACES TURNED PALE WHEN…
The morning sun cut through the tall oaks lining the campus of a small university just outside Boston, casting long,…
I JUST SIGNED A $10 MILLION CONTRACT AND CAME HOME TO TELL MY FAMILY. BUT MY SISTER PUSHED ME DOWN THE STAIRS, AND WHEN -I WOKE UP IN THE HOSPITAL MY PARENTS SAID I DESERVED IT. DAYS LATER, MY WHOLE FAMILY CAME TO MOCK ME. BUT WHEN THEY SAW WHO STOOD NEXT ΤΟ ΜΕ, DAD SCREAMED: ‘OH MY GOD, IT’S…
The courtroom fell into a sudden, heavy silence the moment I pushed open the massive oak doors. Every eye turned…
During Sunday Dinner, They Divided My Home — My Legal Team Crashed The Party — A Lawyer Pulled Out the Original Deed and Reversed the Partition in Minutes
The buzz of my phone cut through the quiet hum of my office like a siren. Outside the window, downtown…
My Family Banned Me From the Reunion — So I Let Them Walk Into the Beach House I Secretly Owned — They Opened a Closet and Found the Papers That Shattered Our Family
The email arrived like a paper cut. Small, quick, and bloodless — until it stung.It was a Tuesday morning in…
She Donated Blood — The Recipient Was a Dying Mafia Boss Who Wanted Her Forever — Hospital Records and Phone Logs Show He Tried to Track Her Down
Rain hit the pavement like bullets — each drop a metallic whisper cutting through the night. I stood there, soaked…
End of content
No more pages to load
