Authorities recovered a woman’s body Saturday near a vacant East Germantown school as part of the ongoing investigation into the disappearance of 23-year-old Kada Scott, who has been missing for more than two weeks.
The Philadelphia Police Department, in a statement Sunday, said the remains are “believed to be those” of Scott, though an official confirmation is pending an examination by the Medical Examiner’s Office.
First Deputy Police Commissioner John M. Stanford Jr. told reporters that the body was found in a shallow grave in a wooded area behind Ada H. Lewis Middle School, which closed more than 15 years ago.
Law enforcement had previously searched the property, along with the nearby Awbery Arboretum, but they returned following a “very specific” anonymous tip, according to Stanford. A phone case, iPad case, glasses and other items allegedly belonging to Scott were discovered Oct. 15 near Lewis Middle School, police said.
Scott, a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and a resident of East Mount Airy, was last seen leaving a Chestnut Hill assisted living facility not long after her overnight shift there began Oct. 4, according to authorities.
Investigators believe she was communicating with 21-year-old Keon King and likely met him outside her workplace. King turned himself in on Oct. 14 and has been charged with kidnapping, false imprisonment, stalking and related offenses.
Should the MEO identify the remains found Saturday as Scott and determine her cause of death as homicide, King could face murder charges.
He is currently being held on $2.5 million bail, of which he must post 10% to be released. King’s attorney could not be reached for comment Sunday.
A prior domestic violence case against King – involving the alleged kidnapping and assault of a different woman – was withdrawn earlier this year, after the victim and a witness did not show up for a pair of court hearings.
“We could have done better, in that a really sophisticated approach to the case would have been to try to put it all on with video evidence,” District Attorney Larry Krasner said during a news conference Friday. “That is not usually an easy thing to do. I would say, with 20/20 hindsight, it’s something that could have been done, and I own that. Ultimately, the buck stops here.”
Krasner also continued his longstanding crusade against cash bail, suggesting that the victim and witness may have felt safer testifying if they knew King was behind bars. Prosecutors requested just under $1 million bond in the case, but a bail commissioner set the number at 10% of $200,000, he said.
“There is reason to think he had access to cash,” added Krasner, who declined to elaborate further on King’s finances.
The DA’s Office has said it plans to refile charges against King in relation to the earlier attack.
Scott’s disappearance has made national news and ignited discussions about violence against women.
“Her disappearance and the horrific circumstances now surrounding her death are a reminder that we must do far more to protect women from violence and ensure that those with a history of abuse and harassment are not allowed to harm again,” City Council President Kenyatta Johnson said Saturday in a statement.
