Tayanna Manuel: Body of missing Colorado teen, 16, found in dumpster just 3 days after BF was shot dead
DENVER, COLORADO: The body of a 16-year-old girl, who was missing, was found in a dumpster just three days after her boyfriend was tragically shot dead. As Tayanna Manuel and her boyfriend died in such a short span of time, her family seeks answers.
As per The Sun, they suspected the two deaths were linked. Manuel's mother and two sisters expressed their dissatisfaction with the preliminary findings of the investigation. They described the teen as a sweet, giving girl. "She was just one of those people when you seen her, you fell in love with her," stated Manuel's mother, Pamela, told KDVR.
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ALERT: #DPD is investigating a shooting that occurred in the 4600 block of N Kittredge. One male victim has been transported to a local hospital with unknown extent of injuries. Updates will be posted to this thread. #Denver pic.twitter.com/d2sdAw1So5
— Denver Police Dept. (@DenverPolice) December 24, 2022
Manuel's sister, Nyrobi, further said, "She’s so giving, her smile and her laugh and her sense of humor brightens up anyone’s day." Tess, her other sister, recalled Manuel as "comforting" and "so sweet." "If she had anything going on in her life, she wouldn’t bring that onto anybody else," she reportedly said.
Pamela described the terrible moment when she found out Manuel's body had been found in the trash in the Green Valley Ranch neighborhood on Monday, December 26. Her family reportedly said that they organized their own search team and spent the entire Christmas season hunting for her before the gloomy news. "Her gifts will be the only thing under the Christmas tree this year," Tess reportedly said.
Manuel's boyfriend was fatally shot on Friday, December 23, at a spot very close to where her body was discovered. Her family believed she went missing because she was not found with her boyfriend, according to Nyrobi. The family started looking for her after a missing person report was made on Saturday, December 24, and they eventually came upon a car that investigators think may have been involved in her death. "We know about the vehicle because we found it before the police. We were on all of this before the police were, and then the suspect pulled up while we’re waiting for the police to come and he took the car," stated Nyrobi. Police are currently searching for the car.
Pamela claimed that the police has not said whether Manuel's death was related to her boyfriend's shooting. "I’m going to just say that the police officers did not believe for these two stories to be connected to each other," she reportedly stated. For assistance with the investigation, the family has turned to the Dock Ellis Foundation. To assist the family in finding answers, the group—which is named after the renowned baseball player—posted posters of the 16-year-old. "We’re trying to get the message out that in our communities and the minority communities, for whatever reason that we’re still doing our own research on, is to try to find out why it is when these type of situations happen in the minority communities, it’s kind of like, it’s pushed aside," foundation’s COO Hjordis Ellis reportedly said.
The foundation shared her family's fundraiser page on Facebook and wrote in the caption, "Any loss is devastating, but this loss will be felt deeply by so many. There are no words that sufficiently describe the pain and heartache that her family is feeling as they consider life without Tayanna Manuel." Nyrobi said on the fundriser page, "We want to put our sweet baby to rest."