Phoenix has seen the tragic case of a 15-year-old girl's death come to an abrupt and somber resolution. Kyelonna Smiley, the teenager who was discovered fatally shot on August 4 in west Phoenix, has had her story cut short with conclusions drawn not through trials or testimony, but through the cessation of a suspect's life. According to FOX 10 Phoenix, the suspect, Nohe Prado Morelia, 67, died by suicide four days after the incident, prompting the Phoenix Police Department to close the case.
Fiyonna Austin, the mother of the deceased, grappling with the irreparable fissure in her world, has been deprived of justice as well as her daughter. "I am very, very sad and heartbroken," Austin said in a statement obtained by FOX 10 Phoenix. She describes a perpetual state of anxiety that escalated when her daughter failed to return home, culminating in the heartbreaking news that her daughter had been found shot in a senior citizens' apartment complex.
The details surrounding the young girl's presence at the apartment and her tragic end remain unclear. In an interview, Austin expressed her confusion and distress, saying, "There are no words that I can say except for the fact that the person who took my baby away shattered my world," as per FOX 10 Phoenix.
AZ Central reports that the police concluded Morelia was responsible for Smiley's death. No additional suspects are believed to be involved, and the motive remains unknown.
