THE heartbroken mother of a teenage girl who was allegedly murdered and sexually assaulted said she regrets leaving her “angel” with her step-uncle.
Kylie Toberman, 14, was found in an RV in Vandalia, Illinois after being left in the care of her step-uncle – a man previously arrested for child sexual abuse.
Kylie’s step-uncle Arnold Barry Rivera, 43, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder, aggravated sexual assault and concealing a homicide.
Her mother Megan Zeller, 34, told the Daily Mailshe hadn’t seen her daughter in eight years but remembers her “bubbly” little girl as a loving sister who was “so talented and smart”.
Zeller described the unstable childhood Kylie and her two siblings experienced – which began when she dropped out of cosmetic school and moved her family in with an abusive drug addict boyfriend.
She said the move was a “stupid mistake” which isolated her from her extended family and led to a home plagued by violence and addiction.
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When Kylie was six, the Department of Children and Family Services removed her and her two younger sisters from Zeller’s care and placed them with their step-grandmother, Donna.
After a tough few years of homelessness and drug-addiction, Zeller got clean in 2021 and turned her life around.
Unfortunately, she hasn’t regained custody of her daughters.
Despite her tough childhood, Kylie was said to be bright at school and an active member of the wrestling team.
Kylie was still in the care of her step-grandmother when the tragedy occurred.
State Attorney Brenda Mathis said investigators believe Kylie was in a car with her step-uncle Rivera at the time of her death.
Following an autopsy report, investigators allege jumper cables were used to strangle the 14-year-old.
Her body was then stashed in a blue tote bag and dumped in an RV on the property she was living on.
Records show Rivera previously faced allegations of sexually abusing a minor, a case that was dropped five months later.
Zeller learnt of her daughter’s death from Rivera’s sister.
“I called and she said: ‘Kylie went missing last night. Kylie was found dead. Megan, BJ killed Kylie’,” she recalled.
“You are a sick twisted b*****d,’ Zeller said of Rivera.
“Why Kylie? Why, why did you have to kill her? Molesting her wasn’t enough punishment? Did your mum know? Did you do anything to my other girls?”