The trailer where the body of 10-year-old Jetseta Gage was found last March has burned to the ground.
Johnson County authorities said the Kalona Fire Department responded to a call at the trailer around 12:30 Sunday morning. The trailer was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.
The Johnson County Sheriff's Office said they will look into the possibility the fire was deliberately set. Law enforcement officers stood watch at the trailer Sunday afternoon as the State Fire Marshal conducted an investigation. Authorities said that for now, they'll consider it a crime scene until further investigation. Tire tracks were found on the property.
The unkempt trailer on Orval Yoder Turnkpike in Johnson County was the scene of a heinous murder last year. Ten-year-old Jetseta Gage was taken there, sexually abused and suffocated.
Police found her body under a bathroom sink, and also arrested Roger Bentley at the scene. Bentley has now been convicted of first-degree murder. Just two days ago, a judge gave Bentley two consecutive life prison terms.
Some nearby residents said the trailer was an eyesore and they're glad to see it gone. "I'm glad it's gone, but I think it would have not been there very long anyways," said neighbor Jenean Arnold.
"I wish they would've gone through the proper channels to be disposed of," said neighbor Max McCoy, "but I guess there's a part of me that's glad that it's going to get cleaned up."
Earlier in February, the little girl's family erected a 6-foot tall cross on the property where her body was found, as a memorial. Some neighbors near the trailer objected to the cross and said it made it hard for the community to move past the tragedy.
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