A man was taken into custody in southwest Miami-Dade County on Tuesday in connection to the murder investigation of a teen whose body was found at a construction site.
He was being questioned at Miami-Dade Police headquarters Tuesday night.
Eighteen-year-old Tiffany Cabreja's body was found in the area of southwest 288th Street and 144th Avenue on Saturday, according to Miami-Dade Police.
"We do have a subject in custody. We are not identifying whether or not he is the man responsible for this crime," said police spokesman Det. Roy Rutland. "We have a vehicle in our possession that we recovered shortly after noon today, and we are beginning the forensic portion of our investigation when it comes to that vehicle."
For hours on Tuesday, police were canvassing in the area of the 22100 block of Southwest 134th Avenue. When investigators arrived searching for a suspect they believed to be connected to the Cabreja murder investigation, he fled and hid in an adjacent agricultural area, but was later apprehended, police said.
"I think now, the investigation really begins. There is nothing more important now than this investigation from this point and of course, the judicial process," Rutland said.
Police also said they have recovered the truck involved in the crime, which was being processed by the Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) team.
The major developments were gratifying for Cabreja's grieving family.
"I'm happy that something's going on," her father Domingo Cabreja said. "They've been working hard. I appreciate that they keep working hard."
Officials said that on Saturday they were first called when witnesses reported a body falling out of a commercial truck going eastbound on southwest 288th Street as it made a left turn at southwest 144th Avenue.
"The subject stopped the vehicle, got out and picked the female back up and put her back inside the car," said Miami-Dade Police Det. Robin Pinkard.
The man then continued northbound on southwest 144th Street, police said.
When officers responded to the area, they found Cabreja's body at a nearby construction site, according to authorities.
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Police said Tuesday that a toddler that was seen in the truck by witnesses has been located, is safe and is with family.
Officials previously confirmed the toddler did not belong to the victim.
The Medical Examiner's Office has yet to release a cause of death.
