Bodies of missing Arizona teens found in water basin: cops

Two teenage girls who reportedly ran away from a group home in Arizona were found dead in a water basin over the weekend, local authorities said.

The bodies of Kamryn Meyers, 15, and Sitlalli Avelar, 17, were recovered by police around 6 p.m. Jan. 21 after a man walking his dog alerted authorities to what he thought was a mannequin in a Mesa water retention basin, the Mesa Police Department said in a statement.

Meyers and Avelar were reported missing on Jan. 7 from Powerhouse Youth Facility Inc., a group home for troubled young people around the corner from where they were found.

WAFB reported that the condition of the remains suggested they had been in the water for an extended period before they were found.

The teens’ cause of death will be determined by the medical examiner, Mesa police said.

It is unclear if foul play is suspected.

Brad Miller, an attorney for Powerhouse Youth Facility Inc., told Arizona’s Family that Meyers and Avelar had a history of running away and were overheard discussing plans to leave one day before they went missing. 

As a state facility, Miller explained, Powerhouse cannot force any residents to stay.

Miller stated that Powerhouse officials contacted police and the Arizona Department of Child Safety after the teens left. They reportedly met with police again on Jan. 10 when the pair had not returned.

“There’s so much life ahead of them; they have so much opportunity and growth and learning,” longtime Mesa resident Cathy Catalfo told Arizona’s Family of the two teens.

“[Their deaths are] disappointing, you expect more.”

Catalfo said there has been an uptick in police activity near Powerhouse, which reportedly opened last October.

“There has been a lot of traffic in general, a lot of police officers coming in the last couple of weeks,” she recalled.

“I guess the first thing that comes to my mind is who enticed [the girls] to leave? What made [them] leave a safe environment?”