Nationwide — Jarvis Butts, a convicted pedophile from Detroit, Michigan, was found dead inside his prison cell just weeks after he began serving a 35- to 60-year sentence for murdering a 13-year-old girl he groomed and impregnated. Authorities are investigating the death as a possible suicide.
The Michigan Department of Corrections said staff discovered Butts on Thursday morning at the Charles Egeler Reception and Guidance Center in Jackson. Officers tried life-saving efforts at the scene, but he was pronounced dead. Michigan State Police are now leading the investigation.
According to the New York Post, Butts was sentenced on March 12 after pleading guilty in February to the 2024 killing of Na’Ziyah Harris. He admitted to the crime after investigators said he had been in contact with the teen for years.
Records showed Na’Ziyah was last seen on January 9, 2024, after getting off a bus on Detroit’s east side. Text messages indicated she planned to meet Butts that same day. Prosecutors also said she was pregnant at the time of her disappearance, and evidence showed he searched online for ways to end a pregnancy using pills and toxic substances.
Investigators said the relationship between Butts and the victim began years earlier, with grooming activity dating back to 2022. Prosecutors also said he had already fathered a child with the girl’s aunt before targeting Na’Ziyah and was aware of the pregnancy months before the killing.
Butts also faced separate convictions tied to sexual abuse of two other girls under the age of 13. He received an additional 10- to 15-year sentence for those offenses, and records showed earlier convictions from 2005 involving similar crimes.
Na’Ziyah’s body has not been recovered despite the guilty plea, which required Butts to provide its location as part of the agreement. Her family continues to wait for answers while Detroit police say the search for her remains is still ongoing.