Not Guilty Pleas Entered in Child Abduction Case

WALKER, Minn. (AP) – A man accused of abducting and killing a 5-year-old girl from central Minnesota has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges.

Alayna Ertl

Zachary Todd Anderson is facing 19 charges, including first-degree murder, kidnapping, and criminal sexual conduct. Anderson was arrested August 2016 in Cass County after Alayna Ertl was kidnapped from her home in Watkins, about 70 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

Alayna’s body was found submerged and covered with debris, near a cabin owned by Anderson’s family near Motley. An autopsy found the girl was strangled.

Anderson, who’s from Coon Rapids, was considered a friend of Alayna’s father. A jury trial is reportedly expected to begin next spring.