Arrest Made in Death of Nebraska Teen Found in Arizona Bonfire Pile

A 37-year-old Arizona man has been arrested for the murder of a Nebraska teen whose body was found last month in a desert bonfire pile near Apache Junction.

The body of 18-year-old Parker League, who was on a graduation trip to Arizona from his Nebraska home, was found on June 12 in a remote area of Tonto National Forest, near the Bulldog Canyon-Hackamore area, as CrimeOnline reported. Family said League arrived in the area on June 9 and texted his brother the following day. He was scheduled to return home on the same day the body was found.

The family filed a missing persons report on June 15 in Tempe, Arizona, where League was staying.

Parker League white shirt
Parker League/handout

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said Anthonie Ruinard was charged with League’s murder, along with two counts of drug possession for sale, 2 count of possession of drug manufacturing equipment, one count of manufacturing narcotics, two counts of illegally possessing a weapon, one count of credit card theft, and one count of concealing or abandoning a body.

The sheriff’s office said they obtained video footage from several locations where League’s bank card was used before and after his death. Video from a gas station in Chandler, Arizona, showed the teen and Ruinard leaving the store together in a black Dodge Challenger — the last time League was seen alive.

Detectives served a search warrant on Ruinard’s home and the car and found DNA evidence in the trunk that matched League’s. The DNA and other evidence collected led to Ruinard’s arrest.

No other details about League’s death have been released.

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[Featured image: Anthonie Ruinard/Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office]