Former restaurateur, 38, is charged with murdering 18-year-old Nebraska teen Parker League who was found stabbed, dismembered and burned beyond recognition in Arizona desert

A former restaurateur has been charged with the murder of Nebraska teen whose stabbed and dismembered body was found burned beyond recognition in the Arizona desert.

Anthonie Ruinard Jr., 38, is accused of killing Parker League, 18, and dumping his body in a pit at Tonto National Park last year. A motive has not yet been disclosed.

Ruinard, originally from Chandler, was arrested in July and has now been indicted by a grand jury on second-degree murder and abandonment or concealment of a dead body.

League had just graduated high school and flew to Arizona on June 9 to visit friends in Tempe, according to his family.

Just three days later, his charred body was found at the bottom of a bonfire with investigators relying on dental records to identify him. 

A former restaurateur has been charged with the murder of Nebraska teen Parker League, 18, (pictured) whose remains were found in an Arizona desert in June 2023

Anthonie Ruinard Jr., 38, is accused of killing League, 18, and dumping his body in a pit at Tonto National Park 

The teen had been stabbed and dismembered  before his body burned beyond recognition, investigators said

League was last seen alive on surveillance footage leaving a gas station with Ruinard on June 11.

Investigators say they identified Ruinard as a suspect using other video where League's credit and debit cards were used.

They added that the victim's blood was then discovered in the trunk and on the rear bumper of a vehicles  seized from Ruinard's property.

The suspect told  investigators that League had sold him debit cards for $500 which he then threw away.

Court records show he admitted to using cocaine and marijuana prior to meeting League.

'Experienced homicide prosecutors in my office combed through nearly 4,000 pages of material submitted in this homicide case. After five months of careful review, we were able to secure this indictment,' said Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. 

'This is the next step in bringing justice to Parker League and his family.' 

League's family spoke of their devastation at the time of his disappearance.

League was last seen alive on surveillance footage leaving a gas station with Ruinard on June 11

'It's hard to accept because he was the nicest kid in the world,' his brother Hunter League, told ABC15.

'I got a call from my dad telling me to come home. I asked him 'why' about three times and the third time he tried to explain it, he just started breaking down.'

Ruinard's trial is set to begin in July 2024.