SALISBURY, N.C. – A North Carolina sheriff says a teenage girl reported missing from her home in 2013 was likely dead long before authorities learned of her disappearance.
Rowan County Sheriff Kevin Auten also told a news conference Monday that authorities have made no deal with Sandy Parsons, the adoptive father who led investigators to the remains of Erica Parsons, or with Casey Parsons, his wife.
Testimony at their trial for tax fraud last March unveiled a pattern of abuse of Erica, who lived with the family until she disappeared in 2011 at age 13. She wasn't reported missing until 2013. Prosecutors say the couple continued collecting adoption benefits after her disappearance.
Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Sheriff Jay Brooks said last Thursday that Erica's remains were found in his county, which is on the North Carolina border.
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