Trudy Appleby, 11, was abducted near her home in August 1996. Police have finally arrested a suspect

A suspect has been arrested nearly three decades after an 11-year-old went missing in Illinois.

Jamison Fisher, 50, has been indicted on three counts of first-degree murder and one count of concealment of a homicidal death in the murder of Trudy Appleby, authorities in Moline, Illinois, said during a news conference on Thursday, Aug. 14. A grand jury in Henry County, Illinois indicted Fisher a day prior.

Police said the facts of the case would’ve also supported a kidnapping charge, but the statute of limitations prohibited them from bringing the count against the suspect.

“28 years, 11 months and 23 days, that’s how long the family of Trudy Appleby has waited for a resolution to her disappearance,” said Moline Police Department Chief Darren Gault. “That is the time it has taken to stand before you and say what we long had hoped to say: ‘We have made an arrest in the murder of Trudy Appleby.’”

The child was last seen on Aug. 21, 1996. Witnesses said they saw the child get into the car of an unidentified older male. Earlier in the day, she asked her father if she could go swimming with a friend on Campbell’s Island in Rock Island County, about 170 miles west of Chicago.

Her father said no. Phone records indicate she went ahead with those plans, Gault told reporters. Authorities believe the child was later strangled to death, but said they’ve been unable to recover her body.

“This case has haunted not only Trudy’s family but every investigator who touched it in our community," said Gault.

Gault named Fisher a person of interest in 2020. He was a family friend and associate of another suspect who died in 2014, the chief said. Fisher was in custody in Iowa on unrelated charges when he was served an arrest warrant. Gault said he’ll remain there, pending further court proceedings.

While praising investigators, Gault said: “Today is not about celebration...It’s about accountability and most importantly, it’s about Trudy Appleby.”

Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at mdelrey@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Man indicted in 1996 disappearance of 11-year-old Trudy Appleby

Reporting by Michelle Del Rey , USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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