PHOENIX, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- An Arizona woman charged with child abuse has been told she is suspected of killing her missing 5-year-old daughter.
At a court appearance Tuesday, Jerice Hunter of Phoenix looked surprised when informed she was a murder suspect, The Arizona Republic reported. Bail was set at $100,000.
Hunter was arrested Monday, weeks after she reported Jhessye Shockley missing.
A court document described statements from Jhessye's older sisters about their mother's treatment of the little girl.
An older sister told investigators she last saw Jhessye in September. She said she found the 5-year-old in a closet and that she looked like a "zombie."
Hunter did not report her daughter missing until Oct. 11.
Jhessye spent much of her life with relatives in Arizona while her mother was in prison in California. Hunter was convicted there of abusing some of her children.
The missing girl's three older sisters gave information to police that was included in a statement of probable cause. One told investigators her mother called Jhessye a "whore" when she found her watching television with a boy.
The older children are now in foster care.
