Lonoke, Arkansas Savannah Grace Childress was found in Arkansas Saturday night after a chaotic sequence in which her kidnapper allegedly shot a police officer and drove away before she got to safety.
William Robert Ice, 38, is the alleged kidnapper and died in hospital on Sunday, according to a release from the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities found Ice near a McDonald’s restaurant in Lonoke, Arkansas, near Interstate 40.
Inside the vehicle, officers found Ice, who they believe shot himself at one point after driving away.
Authorities said on Saturday two police officers from Lonoke recognized a Dodge SUV linked to Childress’s disappearance. The vehicle was parked in the restaurant close to I-40. Officers approached the vehicle and Ice aimed a gun at them, firing an officer and seriously injuring them. The second officer was unharmed.
An Arkansas State Trooper spotted the vehicle exiting the parking lot and gave chase. Ice eventually drove into a snow bank, where the vehicle became disabled. Childress, a passenger, then got out of the vehicle and ran to a state soldier.
Officials said Ice was also wanted in at least two states in connection with other cases of child predators. Investigators found that Ice had taken Childress from her home in Denton on Feb. 11.
Childress, 14, had been missing for over a week. Davidson County authorities issued an Amber Alert for her on Feb. 12. On Sunday, special agents will help Childress return to North Carolina.
Ice’s body has been submitted to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory to determine the manner of death. The injured officer is in a stable condition in a hospital.
Ice had an address in Jackson Center, Pennsylvania and was wanted by Pennsylvania authorities.
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