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Phoenix woman killed teen runaway and left her body in dumpster, records say

Bree Burkitt
The Republic | azcentral.com
Lorenda Ritter

Police said a 29-year-old woman killed a teenage runaway and wrapped her body in plastic wrap before putting her in a dumpster.

Lorenda Ritter was arrested Friday on suspicion of killing an 18-year-old woman at her apartment near Roosevelt and 24th streets, court records released Monday show.

Ritter told police investigators she had strangled the woman to death before wrapping her body in plastic wrap, according to the probable-cause statement provided in court documents. She then disposed of the body in a dumpster near her home, records state. 

She drove detectives to the dumpster where she left the body, records said. It wasn't clear whether the body was previously discovered.

Police have not publicly identified the victim, but court records said she was an 18-year-old runaway from California who had been reported missing by her family. 

Investigators did not offer a motive for the killing in the probable-cause statement. 

Ritter was booked into jail on suspicion of one count of first-degree murder and abandonment/concealing of a dead body. She was being held in a Maricopa County Jail on a $750,000 bail. 

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