GUILTY IL - Chicago, Female body in cardboard box, Jan'07 - Marlaina Reed

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Anita Richman said:
Fairy, I agree. The one thing from that article which was comforting to me is that an organization which helps young women on the street knew Marlaina ("Niki") and cared about her and now grieves for her.
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Yes - but they knew she had run away - and not very far. Why did it take a year for her to be identified???:mad:
 
RIP Marlaina

Its good that this was solved finally and shes been named but so heartbreaking at the same time.

Its too bad there is not way more coverage of missing and unidentified people because so many more could be solved because it seems like when there is a lot of coverage and they devote time to getting a good model shown it gets solved. There should be a tv channel or something devoted to this because there are just so many.

Is it just me or is this getting way worse anymore?

Fairy1 said:
Yes - but they knew she had run away - and not very far. Why did it take a year for her to be identified???:mad:
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I agree - since she was from the same state you would think she would have been checked against the UID long before. I think all states should be required to keep missing and IUD databses and unfortunately only a few states do.
 
Thanks Fairy1 and welcome to WS.

I'm glad Marlaina's family has been found. Though, admittedly "lost" with knowing Marlaina, a teen, had been out there on the streets with what looks like little to no support from her family for so many years. Then again, I don't know what the circumstances where and only have what has been written in the media.

My prayers are with her family.

I sure hope LE finds the who did this!
 
Cubby said:
Thanks Fairy1 and welcome to WS.

I'm glad Marlaina's family has been found. Though, admittedly "lost" with knowing Marlaina, a teen, had been out there on the streets with what looks like little to no support from her family for so many years. Then again, I don't know what the circumstances where and only have what has been written in the media.

My prayers are with her family.

I sure hope LE finds the who did this!
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Thank you for the welcome Cubby! This story has touched me so deeply - I don't know why. Whatever Marlaina's lifestyle or circumstances, no one deserves to be brutally murdered and thrown away like trash. Seems like this child fell through many cracks and it makes me wonder - and worry - how many more like her are out there. :mad:
 
Please don't forget about Marlaina! There is still a killer out there and he must be brought to justice.
 
LE says they're looking for anyone that had any contact with Nikki in the month to month and a half before her disappearance.

I have a feeling Nikki may have been involved in prostitution because of the quotes from Shira Hasan in the Chicago Tribune article:

"Details of Reed's life in Chicago were scarce. But staff workers and clients of the Young Women's Empowerment Project, a Northwest Side organization that serves girls involved in the sex trade, knew her well, co-director Shira Hassan said Monday.

Hassan, who learned of her identification from a reporter Monday afternoon, said members of the group were grieving the loss of the young woman they knew as Niki, who had the "the most intense eyes and sad smile."

". . . I first met Niki in Humboldt Park. She was hanging out at the McDonald's while I was talking to other girls in the area, just eating fries and talking about life," Hassan said in an e-mail interview. Hassan said she saw Reed about once a week.

"Niki was not a nameless, faceless girl," she said. "To us, she was a warrior and one of our fallen. She was an artist, a fighter and a sister to a lot of girls. Niki laughed hard, cried hard and worked hard. We had worried and wondered about her for a year. We won't forget Niki and other unidentified girls—they are all part of our community.""

This would mean that she could have been murdered by a "John" that picked her up for a "trick". I wonder what evidence LE has on this...
 
I live in a collective a few blocks from where Marlaina was found. 2 doors down from our house is a 3-story practice space where kids in bands can rent rooms to practice in. There are also people that squat (live) in the cheap, poorly regulated spaces. According to people I know who have rented spaces, there is a lot of drug activity and prostitution within the building. My friends have even been approached inside the building by prostitutes asking if they want to have a good time, and they have played music with prostitutes they've met before. The building has a weird mix of extremely shady characters who look sheepish walking in the door and kids who legitimately play music and store equipment there.

I'm not sure if this amounts to anything, this is a pretty economically depressed area and prostitution is common. Maybe there's a poster I can print out and put near the front door of the practice space? I'd hate to have LE come in and scare potential tipsters away. Let me know what you all think is the best thing to do.

Kelly
 
azure said:
I live in a collective a few blocks from where Marlaina was found. 2 doors down from our house is a 3-story practice space where kids in bands can rent rooms to practice in. There are also people that squat (live) in the cheap, poorly regulated spaces. According to people I know who have rented spaces, there is a lot of drug activity and prostitution within the building. My friends have even been approached inside the building by prostitutes asking if they want to have a good time, and they have played music with prostitutes they've met before. The building has a weird mix of extremely shady characters who look sheepish walking in the door and kids who legitimately play music and store equipment there.

I'm not sure if this amounts to anything, this is a pretty economically depressed area and prostitution is common. Maybe there's a poster I can print out and put near the front door of the practice space? I'd hate to have LE come in and scare potential tipsters away. Let me know what you all think is the best thing to do.

Kelly
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If you think it would help find her killer, please do. It is a good possibility that Nicki was involved in prostitution. But I'm more inclined to believe who killed her was a pimp - not a client. Maybe the kids in your area knew her and possibly her pimp. As relieved as I am that they determined her identity, I will be thrilled if her killer is caught and taken off the streets. There are many young girls out there who are too young to understand the danger they are in. I'm all for removing one more predator from the mix!
 
azure said:
I live in a collective a few blocks from where Marlaina was found. 2 doors down from our house is a 3-story practice space where kids in bands can rent rooms to practice in.
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That's interesting... because she was found wrapped up in a musical instrument box. Maybe something to look into. Perhaps someone from that practice space has purchased that particular instrument recently.
 
LookOut said:
That's interesting... because she was found wrapped up in a musical instrument box. Maybe something to look into. Perhaps someone from that practice space has purchased that particular instrument recently.
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Good point. I know I read somewhere that the model of keyboard the box was from hasn't been sold for quite some time. Still, you never know. I am determined to keep this case in the forefront. No one deserves the kind of death this child endured! Someone knows something...
 
Does anyone know where this case was moved to? I don't want Marlaina's case to die....
 
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-cold-case-arrest-1024-20101023,0,161971.story

A 46-year-old man is in custody in the 2007 slaying of a teenage girl whose body was found stuffed into a cardboard box on the Northwest Side and who was not identified for a year after the slaying, police said.

An arrest warrant was obtained by Grand Central Area detectives Friday in the slaying of Marlaina "Niki" Reed, 17, a ward of the state who often ran away from the group home in Chicago where she lived, sources said.

The man was taken into custody near his home Friday afternoon without incident.

DNA recovered from cords used to bind the girl links the man to the crime scene, sources said.

The suspect came to detectives' attention in April 2009 when officers were called there and found his dog stabbed to death in a bathtub. He also had been ordered put on court supervision in a 2008 battery case, and has been arrested in the past on domestic battery and other misdemeanor charges.

Police declined to release the identity of the suspect Friday night pending final review of the charges by the Cook County state's
attorney's office

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/...-grand-central-area-detectives-fullerton.html

William McIntosh, 46, was arrested without incident Friday about 7 p.m. outside his home in the 5800 block of West Fullerton Avenue, said Chicago Police Officer John Mirabelli.

McIntosh was ordered held without bail at a court hearing this morning. Dressed in jeans and a leather jacket, he appeared for a few seconds before Judge Donald Panarese.

"What am I charged with?" McIntosh asked.

"Murder," the judge answered bluntly.
 
Wow! Thank you so much for posting this FHC.
Finally Justice for Marlaina!
This was one of, if not the first UID case I followed here at WS.
I'm overjoyed she will finally get the justice she deserves and saddened that that :censored: perp was the last face saw :furious:

I didn't think LE would make an arrest in this case. I'm overjoyed they did.
Marlaina you have never been forgotten and have always been loved.
May you RIP knowing the person who did this to you will face justice.

Excellent Job Chicago PD!
 
The forensic artist, Karen Taylor, did an amazing job with her reconstruction.
I have never seen such a likeness, (in fact I usually hardly see any : /)

Thanks to LE for not giving up on her like so many others had, and thanks god that man is off the streets!

RIP Marlaina :angel:

marlaina-reed-102310.jpg
 
I am so, so, so happy there has been an arrest in Marlaina's case! Honestly thought they'd never find the . Praying for justice!
 
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