Iberia man sentenced to life in prison for 2013 murder

An Iberia man charged with first-degree murder in the killing of his 13-year-old step-niece in late June 2013 pleaded guilty to the crime Friday and was sentenced to life in prison without eligibility for probation or parole.

Steven Henderson, 31, was granted a change of venue from Miller to Laclede County.

Henderson was charged with stabbing the girl to death with a "large survival knife," according to a probable cause statement filed in Miller County by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Both the girl - Macala Shelton - and Henderson were living in the same home along with several other people including a group of children ranging in ages from 2 to 13. The girl's mother was on deployment with the Army in Afghanistan at the time of the killing.

The murder took place about 5:30 a.m. June 22, 2013, the same day the girl was reported missing.

Shelton had been reported missing from her home after relatives notified law enforcement that she had gone to bed about 11:45 p.m. June 21, but was not in her room when they went to wake her around 1 p.m. Saturday.

That same afternoon, the Missouri State Highway Patrol issued an "endangered person advisory" and, along with Miller County sheriff's deputies and volunteers, began a search.

During a press conference, Miller County Sheriff Bill Abbott said officers "didn't like the way Henderson was answering questions" when officers went to the girl's home to question members of the "multiple families" that lived there.

"We learned that there was a vacant farm that was owned by a family friend where Henderson had been acting as a caretaker by doing things like mowing," Abbott said. "While searching the wooded area of the farm, the body of the missing juvenile was located."

Henderson was taken to the Miller County Sheriff's Office for questioning and placed on a 24-hour investigative hold. It was while he was being questioned that he "provided a statement," admitting to the murder.

Abbott said deputies did not find any evidence of drug use in the home; however, the Department of Children and Family Services had been called there several times concerning the welfare of the children. Following that incident, all the children were removed from the residence.