Teen's murder shocks Michigan village

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. -- Almost every day, 14-year-old April Dawn Millsap of Armada Village would take her border collie for a walk and would usually return in about 30 minutes.

When she didn't return within an hour Thursday, her worried mother called police.

What she soon found out was a parent's worst nightmare: her child was found dead.

Police said Friday that Millsap's body was found Thursday night near Macomb Orchard Trail, where she was taking the dog for a walk. The Macomb County Medical Examiner's Office ruled it a homicide.

Joggers discovered the body after being approached by the dog, which repeatedly went toward them and then toward an area where the body was located at about 8:20 p.m.

"It's a little overwhelming," Armada Village Police Chief Howard Smith said Friday at a press conference outside his police station. He couldn't recall the last time the small village in Macomb County had a homicide.

As police spoke to news media outside the station, a crowd of concerned onlookers from the village gathered around.

About 30 investigators with local, county, and state police are helping canvass the area for clues.

Police are searching for a large gray box van, a painter's van that was occupied by two white males. Anyone with information is urged to call 877-616-4677.

Police said there are no signs of sexual assault and said her death wasn't an accident. They would not comment on specifics because of the ongoing investigation.

When the joggers encountered the girl's dog, "they thought the dog was trying to attack them," said Lt. Michael Shaw of Michigan State Police.

The dog "kept coming up and going back" to the body.

"She walked on that trail every day," Shaw said.