Police: Man Confesses to Causing Death of Missing 7-Year-Old Utah Girl

SOUTH SALT LAKE, Utah – A man confessed to causing the death of a missing 7-year-old girl who was found in the bathroom of an apartment in her family's complex, police said.

Esar Met, 21, was being held Wednesday on charges of aggravated murder, kidnapping and evidence tampering. Police took five people into custody on suspicion of homicide Tuesday night.

Police on Tuesday night found the body of Hser Nay Moo, who disappeared Monday from the apartment complex after an argument with her 10-year-old brother.

Click here to read the probable cause statement (pdf).

Met admitted to authorities to confining Hser in the "residence by force, resulting in her death," as well as to trying to conceal the body, according to the Salt Lake County jail document.

Police found Hser's body in a South Parc apartment after obtaining a search warrant for three remaining units at the complex that had yet to be investigated, MyFOXUtah reported.

"Our hearts and our sympathies go out to the family," South Salt Lake Police Chief Chris Snyder said at a press conference. "This has been a very tough case for all of us."

Snyder called the discovery of Hser's body a "tragic ending" to the case.

Cartoon Wah, Hser's father, said through an interpreter that he was thankful to the public for their support.

"I have one daughter in this world, and I loved her the most," Wah said.

Police took four suspects into custody on suspicion of homicide and later apprehended a fifth, Snyder said.

Hser's body showed signs of "trauma" but authorities do not know how she died, and an autopsy will be performed, he said.

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More than 800 people searched for Hser, Snyder said, adding that investigators went without sleep in hopes of finding the little girl alive.

Police didn't release the names of the suspects taken into custody.

Through an interpreter, Hser's father, Cartoon Wah, told The Salt Lake Tribune he saw the girl leave the apartment and walk south. He said his daughter didn't respond when he asked where she was going.

He described his daughter as smart and skilled.

Wah, a Burmese immigrant who came to the United States last year, has five children. Hser was his only daughter.

"We came from Burma where we had a lot of trials in our past life," he said earlier in the day. "Then we come to America and it happens again."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.