Body of missing Louisiana toddler found in Mississippi

PEARLINGTON, Miss. (AP) — Authorities have found the body of a missing 2-year-old Louisiana girl in a remote part of southwest Mississippi, and the girl’s stepfather has been arrested on suspicion of illegally disposing of her body.

Coroner Derek Turnage told the Biloxi Sun Herald Navaeh Allen’s remains were found Sunday in the Logtown area of Hancock County, Mississippi.

Baton Rouge, Louisiana police, meanwhile, have arrested the girl’s stepfather, Phillip Gardner.

They tell The Advocate of Baton Rouge that the 30-year-old Gardner acknowledged finding the girl unresponsive and disposing of her remains without notifying authorities.

Gardner was booked into jail on Sunday. Jail records did not list an attorney for him.