A 43-year-old man is expected to appear in the Butterworth Magistrates Court on Wednesday after he allegedly raped and murdered a 10-year-old girl at a traditional ceremony this weekend.
Spokesperson Captain Jackson Manatha says by the time police got involved it was too late as the girl's body was found in an unused house within the village.
He says the little girl was playing with other children near Kei Bridge in Butterworth on Sunday and stayed behind when her grandmother went home at about 3 pm.
Manatha says at 4 pm the granny sent a sibling to go call her sister to come home as it was cold and raining.
The child could not be found and a missing person report was opened at Kei Bridge police station.
The child's body was found in an unused house on Monday in the same village where the traditional ceremony took place.
Manatha says their investigation quickly led them to the suspect who was arrested.
He will be charged with rape and murder.
