The 11-year-old vanished after she left to catch the school bus on Thursday morning in the small, east Texas town of Livingston, about 110km northeast of Houston.
Audrii never made it onto the bus.
But “a small backpack that likely belonged to a child” was located near the Lake Livingston Dam,” the local sheriff’s office said.
Now, a man who was arrested for an unrelated aggravated assault case is believed to be “one of the persons of interest involved in the disappearance” of Audrii, the sheriff’s office said.
But the girl’s whereabouts remain a mystery.
Here’s what we know about the case.
She never made it to school that day
Audrii was last seen around 7am on Thursday near her home on Lakeside Drive.
The home is close to Lake Livingston – “one of the largest reservoirs in the state, with 83,000 surface acres”.
The lake provides water for the city of Houston and other East Texas cities.
According to the sheriff’s office, “Audrii should have caught the school bus at her neighborhood bus stop; however, school officials reported to the Sheriff’s Office that the school bus did not pick Audrii up, nor did she report to school.”
Audrii’s family reported her missing after she didn’t return home from school.
A multi-agency search ensued.
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Her backpack may have been found
On Friday, “a small backpack that likely belonged to a child was located near the Lake Livingston Dam,” the local sheriff’s office said.
Previously, authorities said Audrii was carrying a bright red “Hello Kitty” backpack.
The investigation “remains active and ongoing,” the sheriff’s office said.
‘Foul play may be a factor’
Investigators have identified a 42-year-old man “as one of the persons of interest involved in the disappearance” and believe his dark blue 2003 Chevrolet Suburban was involved, the sheriff’s office said.
Sheriffs arrested the man on Friday on an unrelated charge of aggravated assault.
Authorities have not released details on how the man might be connected to Audrii’s disappearance.
“Our primary focus and hope is that we bring Audrii safely home,” Texas DPS spokesperson Lt. Craig Cummings said.
“But we also realise that foul play may be a factor.”
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‘This is the stuff you see on TV’
Audrii’s mother, Cassie Matthews, said her heart always broke for the parents of missing children whom she heard about on the news.
“This is the stuff you see on TV, and you can only imagine what the family and the parents are going through,” Matthews told local media.
Now, she’s one of those parents.
“There’s not words for it. There is not one feeling you feel. It’s a roller coaster. You are broken, you are mad, you are empty. And right now, I am empty,” Matthews said.
“She has so many opportunities ahead of her, and she deserves every right to be able to reach those opportunities.”
