14-year-old boy in custody for slaying of 10-year-old Lily Peters

Lily was heading home from her aunt's house when she went missing.

April 27, 2022, 4:04 PM

A 14-year-old boy is in custody for allegedly killing 10-year-old girl Lily Peters and leaving her body on a Wisconsin walking trail.

The defendant, an eighth grader who was known to Lily's family, made his first court appearance on Wednesday.

Prosecutors said in court that the defendant intended to "rape and kill the victim from the get-go." In his statement to police, the boy allegedly said he punched Lily in the stomach, hit her with a stick, knocked her to the ground and strangled her "to the point of death," before sexually assaulting her, officials said.

PHOTO: A makeshift memorial for 10-year-old Iliana "Lily" Peters, April 25, 2022, in Chippewa Falls, Wis.
A makeshift memorial for 10-year-old Iliana "Lily" Peters, April 25, 2022, in Chippewa Falls, Wis. Peters was found dead in a park earlier in the day after being reported missing the night before.
Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune via AP

Lily, a fourth grader, was reported missing by her father on Sunday night, said police in Chippewa Falls, a city about 100 miles east of Minneapolis.

She had been at her aunt's house on Sunday and never made it home that night, police said.

PHOTO: Lily Peters of Chippewa Falls, Wis. is pictured in an undated family photo released by the Chippewa Falls Police Department. The 10-year-old was found dead on April 25, 2022.
Lily Peters of Chippewa Falls, Wis. is pictured in an undated family photo released by the Chippewa Falls Police Department. The 10-year-old was found dead on April 25, 2022.
Chippewa Falls Police Department

On Sunday night, officers found Lily's bike in the woods by a walking trail near her aunt's house, police said.

Around 9:15 a.m. Monday, Lily's body was found in a wooded area near the walking trail, Chippewa Falls Police Chief Matthew Kelm said at a news conference.

PHOTO: Officials search a wooded area next to the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company during an investigation of the homicide of Iliana "Lily" Peters, in Chippewa Falls, Wis., April 26, 2022.
Officials search a wooded area next to the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company during an investigation of the homicide of Iliana "Lily" Peters, in Chippewa Falls, Wis., April 26, 2022.
Dan Powers/USA Today Network

On Tuesday evening, Kelm said police arrested an unidentified juvenile suspect.

"While nothing will bring back Lily Peters, we are grateful to deliver the news of an arrest to the family," he said at a news conference.

PHOTO: Tiffany Thompson and her step-daughter Lexy Frank, 8, leave a stuffed animal and drawing at a large memorial for Iliana "Lily" Peters at Parkview Elementary School in Chippewa Falls, Wis., April 26, 2022.
Tiffany Thompson and her step-daughter Lexy Frank, 8, leave a stuffed animal and drawing at a large memorial for Iliana "Lily" Peters at Parkview Elementary School in Chippewa Falls, Wis., April 26, 2022.
Dan Powers/USA Today Network

Judge Benjamin Lane on Wednesday set a $1,000,000 cash bond for the juvenile. The teen won't have contact with any other juveniles at the juvenile detention center. He'll return to court on May 5 to be assigned permanent counsel.

ABC News' Victoria Arancio, Matt Foster and Darren Reynolds contributed to this report.