GoFundMe Page Created for Family of Alayna Ertl, Minnesota Girl Killed Saturday

A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family of the 5-year-old Watkins, Minnesota girl who was kidnapped and killed.

On Saturday, Meeker County Sheriff’s Office deputies received a report of a missing child. Ertl’s remains were found later that day in a swampy wooded area a few hundred yards from the cabin. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The fundraising effort was established to "help ease some of the family's burdens they are experiencing as they deal with this tremendous loss," according to the page.

Ertl's obituary describes her as a joyful girl and a friend to everyone she ever met:

Alayna gave joy to our lives by always having a smile and kind words to say. She was an animal lover, a princess, a singer, a great friend to everyone she met, and was our peanut. She loved learning from her brother and always gave the best hugs.

KARE 11 reported that a candlelight vigil will be held for Ertle Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. at the Church of St. Anthony in Watkins.

A visitation for Ertl will take place Thursday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Ertl Funeral Home in Watkins. The funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday at the Church of St. Anthony.

The crime is being investigated jointly by the Meeker and Cass County sheriff’s offices and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA).

Ertl was first reported missing on Saturday at 10 a.m. to Meeker County Sheriff’s Office deputies.

Ertl’s parents told deputies that they put her bed on Saturday at 2 a.m. and that at 8 a.m., both she and a guest who had spent the night, Zachary Anderson, a family friend of Ertl’s and her father’s co-worker, were gone.

The father's white GMC Sierra truck was also missing with his cell phone inside. Deputies conducted a neighborhood canvass for Ertl.

They also contacted the family’s cell phone provider to try to locate the whereabouts of Anderson.

When Ertl was not located during the canvass, the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office contacted the BCA to request assistance with the investigation.

BCA agents and sheriff’s deputies canvassed local businesses and the neighborhood for video surveillance images and worked to develop information on the whereabouts of Anderson.

When the video and leads did not result in Ertl or Anderson being located, an Amber Alert was issued at 1:12 p.m.

Cass County sheriff’s deputies located the stolen vehicle on property owned by Anderson’s family in rural Cass County. No one was inside the vehicle or a cabin on the property.

Additional law enforcement responded to the property and Anderson was located at approximately 4:24 p.m. by K-9 officers in a wooded area less than a mile from the cabin.

Anderson did not attempt to flee, he did not have a weapon and did not resist arrest.

Information provided by the suspect lead law enforcement to Ertl’s remains in a swampy wooded area a few hundred yards from the cabin. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Anderson made his first court appearance Tuesday morning. His bail is set at $2 million.

Images via Meeker County Sheriff's Office