High school friend who pleaded in TV interview for return of missing girl, 19, arrested for her murder after admitting he killed her and hid body

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Lea Chali Porter, 19, was reported missing June 5 by her mother
She was last reported visiting high school acquaintance Christopher Waide, 23, at his apartment
He says she left his apartment in the middle of the night after they got into a fight
In the days after her disappearance, police interviewed Waide and searched his home but didn't find cause to make an arrest
On Thursday, Porter's brother and boyfriend confronted Waide and he confessed to killing her and disposing her body
He has since been arrested and charged with sexual assault and first-degree murder
Police say Waide is cooperating and helping investigators find Porter's body

Published: 19:23 EST, 13 June 2014 | Updated: 02:55 EST, 14 June 2014

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The high school friend of a missing Colorado teen who gave a television interview begging for help in the search, was arrested for the 19-year-old woman's murder on Thursday.

Lea Chali Porter, 19, of Pueblo was reported missing by her mother on June 5 and was last seen driving to 23-year-old friend Christopher Waide's apartment after getting into a fight with her boyfriend.

In the wake of her disappearance, Waide gave a television interview saying Porter left his house in the middle of the night and he hadn't seen her since, though her car never left his apartment's parking lot.

From concerned friend to number one suspect: 23-year-old Christopher Waide (right) was arrested on Thursday after confessing to killing Denver woman Lea Porter, 19. Before he was arrested, Waide gave a television interview in which he asked for help searching for the missing girl

Missing: 19-year-old Lea Porter was first reported missing on June 5 by her mother. She was last seen driving to Waide's apartment after getting into a fight with her boyfriend

But after being confronted by Porter's brother and boyfriend in a recorded conversation Thursday, Waide copped to killing the missing girl and dumping her body.

Booked: Waide is currently being held without bond at the Adams County Jail on charges of first-degree murder and sexual assault. His first court appearance is scheduled for Monday

Police say Waide was always a suspect in the girl's disappearance but that they didn't have enough evidence to arrest him.

While he was free, Waide gave an interview to CBS Denver reporters, in which he voiced apparent concern over his missing friend.

'Well, overall I just want her to be safe,' he said in the taped interview. 'I don’t have very many friends but the friends I do have I’m very loyal to. So even losing one is a heavy blow for me. I tried texting her. I’ve tried calling her. I’ve left her some messages on Facebook and haven’t heard anything back from her.'

During the interview, the reporter noted that Waide looked on edge, and he said the investigation was putting him outside his comfort zone.

'It’s definitely intimidating because I’m more of a person to listen and not speak. So with everyone trying to get in touch with me and asking me what happened, it’s been a shock to my system,' Waide said.

In addition to the television interview, Waide wrote several posts on Facebook raising awareness of Porter's disappearance.

The last post was dated June 9 and said: 'Lea please come back to us'.

Porter and Waide both attended Florence High School together and had recently connected on Facebook. She graduated in 2013 and was planning a move to Denver, and Waide promised to help.

Waide initially told investigators that he and Porter got into a fight when she came over to his apartment, after he confronted her about having heroin. Porter's mother says she wasn't aware her daughter struggled with substance abuse.

Crime scene: On Friday, police cordoned off Waide's apartment and carried out several brown bags of evidence

Mystery: Waide initially told police that Porter left his house in the middle of the night and he hadn't heard from her since. He wrote several posts on Facebook, raising awareness of Porter's disappearance (right)

But Waide said she left after that and hadn't heard from her.

Waide changed his story on Thursday when Porter's brother and boyfriend approached him at his apartment.

He took them to a nearby park where he confessed to murdering Porter and even went into detail about how he killed her.

The two men had 911 recording the conversation the whole time and Waide was arrested that evening.

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Police say he is being 'cooperative' and even 'helping with finding the body'.

On Friday, investigators removed several brown bags of evidence from Waide's apartment, as well as trash bins in the apartment complex. They also cordoned off an area near a landfill.

'We have some good leads as to where Lea's at so we want to bring her home to her family,' Westminster Police Department spokesman Cheri Spottke told the Denver Post.

Waide is being held without bond at the Adams County Jail on charges of first-degree murder and sexual assault. His first court appearance is scheduled for Monday.

Confession: Waide later confessed to killing Porter after her boyfriend and brother confronted him at his apartment

Murder Suspect Assisting With Search For Victim, Police Say - CBS Denver

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Super23, Paradise, United States, 30 minutes ago

He looks the part, creepy and weird and loves publicity. Hang him high!

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CraftyArtist, Boston, USA, 4 hours ago

He is creepy looking!

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Mary Regina Costanzo, Phoenix, United States, 4 hours ago

Rip!

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pj143girl, Asheville, 4 hours ago

Horrible, just horrible.

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Pasha, Beverly Hills, United States, 5 hours ago

Awfully sad what's happened to this young lady... Jut looking @ the monsters pictures gives me the creeps.

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Brian, chicago, United States, 5 hours ago

first it says she got into a fight with the high school friend, then it says she visited the high school friend after a fight with her boyfriend. amateur hour once again.

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CarolineCaroline, Los Angeles, 5 hours ago

You can tell just by looking at their skin and piercings, that they are both on drugs. Why do women think it is sexy to have a face full of piercings and bizarre makeup like that?

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Victoria1988, Dowagiac, United States, 5 hours ago

Just because someone has piercing and make up doesn't mean they're on drugs.

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sunny, lake county Florida, United States, 4 hours ago

why do you think people with facial piercings are trying to be sexy? Maybe they simply like the look for themselves. Times have changed.

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Brittany Dufur, Canon City, United States, 5 hours ago

Another thing Chris said in an interview, Jules, was, "I'm playing the part of the concerned friend." In Colorado we don't word things like that. I would have said, "I was concerned for MY friend, She is my friend so I confronted her, I AM friends with her", etc. His sentence about playing the part made me shiver. Why play the part? Are you or are you not her friend? It seems like such a simple statement but to me, well, it chilled me to my core.... so I'm glad someone else has noticed his words are coming out in a way that make him even more guilty.

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sunny, lake county Florida, United States, 4 hours ago

In colorado you don't speak like that? I'd say no one speaks like that.

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girl interrupted, NC, United States, 6 hours ago

You can tell that boy is a creep just looking at him. You can also tell he's guilty from that pathetic interview he gave. Big misshapen head, lopsided eyes, large forehead and baby teeth on adult men can be indicators he's got mental problems. Just my opinion.

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Brittany Dufur, Canon City, United States, 6 hours ago

I went to school with both of them in Cotopaxi (not Florence, though Lea did graduate from Florence)... This is such a shock to us. She wasn't a bad kid, she was a very happy loving person. Chris was nothing you would expect from reading this. He was quiet and smart. But kind, everyone is stunned he did this. Heck, before all this happened my husband and I (my husband also attended Cotopaxi) would have laughed, no way. Chris wasn't a gang member and neither was Lea. The drug issue was a lie he made up to postpone the cops and distract them. He was creepy in a way but I always assumed it was because he was smart and sort of socially awkward. All the evidence and circumstances point to him even without his confession. I feel like he did do it. It churns my stomach to think that I shared many classes with him, had conversations and told jokes. I didn't know Lea very well, she was quite a bit younger but I knew her brother and he's a really good kid. They both came from good families...