Police arrest neighbor accused in 12-year-old girl's brutal murder near Nashville

NASHVILLE -- (WZTV) -- Metro Nashville announced they arrested a man on Monday in the brutal murder of a 12-year-old girl inside her family's mobile home in August.

According to the MNPD, 45-year-old Roy D. Coons lived two doors down from Yhoana and is accused of strangling her to death.

Metro Police Chief Steve Anderson said Coons and Yhoana knew of each other since living so close together, and he had been a suspect since he was brought up to police.

“The murder of Yhoana Arteaga was shocking to this community, including members of this police department,” Chief Steve Anderson said. “This afternoon, we have been able to bring about relief to the Old Dickerson Pike neighborhood and Nashville as a whole. I am grateful to our team of detectives, crime scene experts, and importantly, the scientists in the TBI and MNPD crime laboratories for the countless hours of work on this case since August 10.”

Nashville Mayor Megan Barry thanked police and community members for the work on this investigation.

Metro Police said a final autopsy showed 12-year-old Yhoana Arteaga was strangled to death in her family's mobile home on August 10. Police said it was undetermined whether or not she was sexually assaulted. The final autopsy also showed bruises on her head.

"Without being overly specific, there was blunt force trauma to her body and her clothing was in disarray," Don Aaron said in an August news conference.

Coons was indicted by a grand jury for first-degree premeditated murder, two counts of first-degree felony murder, attempted rape of a child and especially aggravated burglary. He will be held without bond.

Metro Nashville Police said Coons has previously been convicted of more than 30 offenses since 1992. Most recently, he was convicted of felony marijuana possession and unlawful gun possession by a convicted felon in January of last year. He received an 8-year probated sentence.

In August, police said Yhoana Arteaga died from brutal blunt-force trauma in her mobile home at Hillview Acres. Officers previously did not give details about her injuries, describing the scene as 'brutal' and horrific.'

"I've never seen anything this brutal in my entire career," MNPD Sgt. David Kautzman said in an August news conference.