Body of missing girl, 2, found in wooded area

Polk County sheriff: Search continues for her brother, 10

Searchers in Polk County on Friday afternoon found the body of a 2-year-old girl in the area where her dead mother was found earlier this week, Sheriff Scott Sawyer said.

During a news conference Friday afternoon, Sawyer said Acelynn Wester’s body was found about 2 p.m. Friday in a heavily wooded area southeast of Cove, which is about 10 miles south of Mena.

Acelynn’s brother, 10-yearold Reilly Scarbrough, is still missing.

The body of Acelynn’s mother, Bethany Jo Wester, 43, of Mena was found Tuesday afternoon in a creek southeast of Cove, prompting the search for the two children. Deputies were called to the area when someone reported a suspicious object in the creek.

The search is scheduled to resume today for Reilly, who was last seen Sunday, the sheriff’s office said.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children released a statement Thursday saying Acelynn and Reilly were missing and believed to be in immediate danger. The statement described Reilly as 3 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 60 pounds.

“We have been working around the clock,” Sawyer said in a news release Friday morning.

Sawyer hasn’t released the cause of Bethany Jo Wester’s death but said it was being investigated as a homicide. Her body was sent to the state Crime Laboratory in Little Rock for identification and to establish the cause of death.

“We have been working around the clock.”

— Sheriff Scott Sawyer, Polk County

The sheriff’s office announced Thursday the body of Steven J. Payne, 66, Wester’s uncle, was discovered at his home in Hatfield, about 3 miles north of Cove. His death also is being investigated as a homicide, Sawyer said, and his body has been

sent to the Crime Lab for autopsy.

Participating in the search were the Polk County sheriff’s office, Mena Police Department, FBI, Arkansas State Police, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, Arkansas State Parks, U.S. Forest Service, Montgomery County sheriff’s office and Grannis Police Department, the news release said.