Crime

Charges filed in May death of 9-year-old Fla. girl

/ CBS/AP

TEMPLE TERRACE, Fla. - A 35-year-old man has been arrested and charged in the death and sexual battery of a 9-year-old girl whose body was found in Tampa Bay, Fla. nearly three months ago.

Temple Terrace police said Friday that Granville Ritchie faces first-degree murder charges in the death of Felecia Williams. He is being booked into the county jail and it's unclear whether he has retained an attorney.

Felecia was at the apartment of a family friend in May when she went missing.

Ritchie was named as the main suspect in Felecia's killing days after her death. He was arrested shortly after the killing on an unrelated drug charge and authorities managed to keep him in jail as the investigation progressed, reports the Tampa Bay Times.

Officials allege he raped and strangled the girl then stuffed her body into a suitcase.

Felecia's family attended a police news conference on Friday where the arrest was announced.

© 2014 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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