Detroit man charged with murder, sexual assault of missing teen Na'Ziyah Harris
(CBS DETROIT) — The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office is charging a Detroit man with murder and sexual assault in connection to the case of Na'Ziyah Harris, who has been missing since January.
Jarvis Butts, 41, of Detroit, was charged with first-degree premeditated murder, second-degree criminal sexual conduct and child sexually abusive activity.
Butts was arraigned Friday afternoon and remanded to jail. He's back in court for a probable cause conference on Oct. 4 and has a preliminary examination on Oct. 10.
Evidence shows that Harris is dead, but her body has not been found, according to the prosecutor's office.
Authorities reviewed witness statements, surveillance video, phone extractions, police reports, medical records, including 111 gigabytes of video, 506 gigabytes of phone extractions and 19 gigabytes of documents.
Butts is also being charged for the sexual abuse of two other girls in separate cases. The girls were under the age of 13 at the time the offenses occurred, according to Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy.
One of those victims, who is now 20 years old, was allegedly assaulted by Butts from April 2012 to April 2014 at a residence in Detroit. He is being charged with one count of first-degree criminal sexual sexual conduct and three counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, all involving a child under 13 years of age.
The other additional victim, who is now 13 years old, was allegedly assaulted by Butts from July 2015 to July 2017 at a residence in Detroit. He was charged with one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, again involving a child under 13.
"Mr. Butts targeted and befriended women to have sexual relationships with their young daughters," said Worthy. "He would have relationships with their mothers, but his true desire was to have sex with their young daughters. That's what the evidence will show."
Butts is expected to be arraigned after 10 a.m. on Friday.
Prosecutor details Butts' alleged crimes against Na'Ziyah Harris
Harris knew Butts through family members and allegedly met up with him after school on Jan. 9. Evidence shows that she sent a message to Butts from her tablet, which indicated they were going to meet up after school that day. After school, she met up with Butts and a coworker, and she went with them to their auto repair shop on Connor in Detroit, according to the prosecutor's office.
At 9:30 p.m. that night, Butts allegedly checked into a motel, which is confirmed by a receipt and his phone putting him at the location.
Harris was never seen again after Jan. 9.
The prosecutor's office says Butts knew Harris because he is the father of children with Na'Ziyah's biological aunt. Butts allegedly started sending Harris sexually explicit texts in September 2022. In September 2023, she allegedly sent Butts a text saying she had not had her period, and in November 2023, Butts was aware Harris was pregnant, according to evidence.
Phone records also show that Butts had been searching for abortion options online.
On Jan. 10, the day after Harris had been last seen, Butts was allegedly in the area of the Rouge River in Detroit. The clothes that Harris was last seen wearing were found in this area.
"The evidence in this case will clearly show that the defendant's alleged actions were beyond predatory," said Worthy. "They were vulturous - he groomed and preyed upon Na'Ziyah with expertise. We will prove that he killed young Na'Ziyah after he found out she was pregnant at 13 with his child."
Background on Na'Ziyah Harris case
The 13-year-old was last seen getting off her school bus at the corner of Cornwall and Three Mile Drive on Jan. 9. Her family reported her missing to school district authorities the next day. Then, on Feb. 13, the Detroit Police Department took over the investigation. During the press conference, Worthy noted that the investigation would've moved forward faster if the school district had turned the case over sooner.
Since then, investigators have searched several locations across the city, and Michigan State Police searched a pond in Clinton Township.
Police said tips had led them to an area of the Rouge River located behind Greater Grace Temple off Seven Mile Road and Shiawassee. Detroit police were assisted by 13 other local, state and federal partners during the search.
"There is something very specific about this area that we want to take off this list, and that's why we're here today," Detroit Police Chief James White had said at the time of that search.
On Aug. 15, the prosecutor's office announced it was working to determine whether to file charges after receiving a warrant request from the Detroit Police Department. At the time, the prosecutor's office said it would take time to complete the review and wouldn't release any additional details about the request.
