(CNN) The uncle of a 5-year-old Utah girl who went missing from her family's home on Saturday was formally charged with aggravated murder Wednesday, hours after investigators had held out hope of finding Elizabeth Shelley alive, police said. Authorities were searching for Elizabeth's body hours after telling reporters they believed she may have been hurt and expressing hope that surveillance and smart doorbells could help find her. Whipple had been drinking with Elizabeth's mother and her live-in boyfriend the night before the girl was reported missing, according to court documents filed in Cache County. The suspect, located by police hours after Elizabeth went missing, told investigators that alcohol makes him "black out" and that "he sometimes does 'criminal things' when he blacks out," the documents said. There were dark stains consistent with blood on his pants and cuts on his hands.

Source: CNN May 29, 2019 07:41 UTC