Body of missing man found in bonfire pile in Tonto National Forest, new details revealed
MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. - A body of a missing 18-year-old man was found in the rubble of a bonfire pile in a remote area of the Tonto National Forest, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office said.
Deputies responded to reports of a body that was found on June 12 in the morning just outside of Apache Junction.
The body was found in Bulldog Canyon, an off-highway vehicle area. It’s in a desert area that neighbors say is being overrun with homeless people, drug users, and criminals.
On June 21, authorities announced that the body belonged to Parker League, who was visiting from Nebraska. Police say his belongings were left behind at a home in Tempe.
Details revealed surrounding disappearance
Parker League had been reported missing on June 14 by his mother in Nebraska, according to his missing persons report.
The mother told police that League had flown into Arizona on June 9 to see a friend. She had last heard from him that same day when he arrived to the state, but had not heard from him since.
"She stated there are fraudulent charges on his bank card," police said. "She said she called QT store in Phoenix and looked up the transaction and it was a black female using the card."
The friend who League was visiting told her that the 18-year-old had started using cocaine around her and saw him last on the morning of Saturday, June 10.
The friend told police that League was a drug dealer, and he said he planned to rent a car and an Airbnb for the remainder of his trip.
No other information was released about League's whereabouts. His body was found two days later.
‘It’s hard to feel safe'
There are nearly two dozen custom homes in a community a couple of hundred yards away from the area. Neighbors say they’ve witnessed a lot of concerning activity going on in the remote desert behind their properties.
While camping is allowed in most parts, neighbors say the area is not well-patrolled, and there’s much more than camping going on beyond the dirt road.
"They just come here and dump and there’s trash all over the place. There’s needles and all kinds of stuff. We’re just tired of it. We live here because of the serenity. Can’t have that serenity with all this commotion going on. Now we have a dead body," Sharon Allison-Brown, a resident in the area said.
League's death is being investigated by the MCSO Homicide Unit.
"Just knowing that they found a body in a fire pit, it’s really scary and really sad, and it’s hard to feel safe, happening in the middle of the night so close to your house," resident Amber Kunau said. "That’s entering new territory for out here, we’ve seen a lot of stuff."