By Seamus McGraw

August 8, 2006

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ROMULUS, Mich. (Crime Library) — Family members and friends of missing Raven Jeffries,7, continued their desperate vigil this morning, hoping against hope that the gruesome discovery Monday of a charred body in a field in Romulus will not mark the end of their hunt.

For now, authorities are classifying the young girl's disappearance as a missing persons case — probably an abduction, though investigators from the Detroit Police Department's homicide unit, together with resources from the FBI, have joined the probe.

That could change, perhaps as early as today, when the local medical examiner begins an autopsy on the remains found Monday. The body, which was charred beyond recognition, did appear to be that of a young African American, who, like Raven, was just over four feet tall and appeared to have been wearing braids in her hair, authorities have said. The medical examiner is expected to try to identify the body using dental records, though it was not immediately clear how long it might be before the results were released.

The body was discovered Monday morning in a trash-strewn lot off Henry Ruff Road by a radio technician there to do maintenance on a radio tower. Within minutes of the find, teams of investigators, including homicide detectives, descended on the scene to search for clues.

But the family of the missing 7-year-old was not among them. Raven's mother, Brenda Jeffries, who has been pounding the streets and manning the phones since the little girl vanished, told the Detroit Free Press that she saw no need for her presence at the site where the body was discovered. "I already know right now what there is to see, it would probably just be shocking, whether it's her or not," she reportedly told the newspaper.

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Contact Seamus McGraw at seamusm@ptd.net

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