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<p>DOYLESTOWN &#8212; Officials announced Thursday that the dismembered remains found strewn on a wooded area in Bear Creek Township earlier this year belonged to a Montgomery County girl missing since the summer.</p><p>The teenager&#8217;s mother is accused of obstructing investigators&#8217; efforts to locate her.</p><p>The remains of Grace Packer, 14, of Abington Township, were discovered near the Francis Walter Dam on Oct. 31 by two hunters, district attorneys from Luzerne, Bucks, and Montgomery counties said at a press conference in Doylestown, Bucks County. The girl&#8217;s death has been ruled a homicide.</p><p>Packer&#8217;s mother, 41-year-old Sara Packer, of Quakertown, has not been charged with her adopted daughter&#8217;s death, but faces charges she &#8220;withheld critical information and gave misleading statements to police after reporting her daughter missing,&#8221; officials said. Authorities consider her a person of interest in the case, they said.</p><p>Sara Packer is being held at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility in lieu of $10,000 bail. She faces a felony charge of endangering the welfare of children and a misdemeanor count of obstructing the administration of law.</p><p>Sara Packer reported her daughter missing July 11, three days after she sent the girl to her room following an argument, according to the criminal complaint. Grace Packer, her mother told police, previously had taken off for days at a time, and on this occasion left with $300.</p><p>Authorities allege Packer was uncooperative during their investigation and only &#8220;reluctantly&#8221; provided information.</p><p>They claim, among other things, she concealed the disappearance from her family, continued cashing more than $3,600 in monthly disability checks related to her daughter&#8217;s care, and failed to provide investigators a photograph of her daughter for more than two months, &#8220;further stymieing efforts to find the girl.&#8221;</p><p>Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis, Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub and Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said detectives from their respective counties, as well as state police and the FBI, continue to investigate the homicide.</p><p>Salavantis said the teen&#8217;s remains were found in several pieces near the dam. Investigators first recovered her head and torso; a later search yielded the girl&#8217;s arms and legs, Salavantis said. The remains were processed by state police before forensic pathologist Dr. Gary Ross identified them as a white female. Grace Packer&#8217;s remains were compared with missing persons databases, leading to her identification, she said.</p><p>Officials would not disclose Grace Packer&#8217;s cause of death or whether they believe she was killed in Luzerne County, but said their investigative resources will be pooled to bring her killer to justice.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a sad day when you have to announce that a teen girl was found, but not found alive,&#8221; Steele said, adding the four-month, multi-county investigation had reached the point where the public&#8217;s help was needed.</p><p>&#8220;Even now, months later, somebody might remember something that seemed insignificant to them but could prove to be the piece we need to solve Grace&#8217;s murder and bring justice for her,&#8221; he said. Anyone with information is asked to call Bucks County detectives, he said.</p><p>Weintraub noted officials were mum on certain aspects of the case because the investigation is ongoing. Two things, however, were certain.</p><p>&#8220;Grace Packer was murdered, and we will use all of our joint investigative resources to bring Grace&#8217;s killer to justice,&#8221; he said.</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Grace_Packer-1.jpg">
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<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Mom charged in relation to Bear Creek Twp. discovery</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Joe Dolinsky</p><p>jdolinsky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Joe Dolinsky at 570-991-6110 or on Twitter @JoeDolinskyTL.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Officials identify dismembered remains found in Bear Creek as missing Montgomery County teen