Man arrested on Miss. child porn charges named ‘person of interest’ in Fla. girl’s slaying

Man is ‘person of interest’ in Fla. girl’s death

ORANGE PARK, Fla. — A man arrested in Mississippi on child pornography charges has been named as a “person of interest” in the slaying of a 7-year-old Florida girl who disappeared on her way home from school last fall.

Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler said Thursday that Jared Harold, 24, was arrested in Meridian, Miss. He said until recently Harold lived in a home near Somer Thompson’s. Authorities were searching that house Thursday.

Somer disappeared Oct. 19 as she walked home from school in Orange Park. Her body was found two days later in a Georgia landfill.

Investigators have refused to reveal how Somer died. During the four-month investigation, authorities said they pursued thousands of leads.