Teen neighbor, 15, pleads not guilty to rape and murder of 8-year-old 'little angel' Maddy - as her father says he FORGIVES the killer 

• Adrian Gonzalez, 15, charged as an adult for allegedly kidnapping, sexually assaulting and killing his neighbor, eight-year-old Madyson Middleton
• He entered a not guilty plea to all charges in California court on Monday 
• Mike Madison, Maddy's father, said he has forgiven Gonzalez 
• Gonzalez allegedly used ice cream to lure the little girl to his apartment  
• She went missing in July, was found a day later in a recycling bin
• Gonzalez was arrested when he was seen near the bin during the search 

By Associated Press and Snejana Farberov For Dailymail.com

Published: 14:35 EST, 21 September 2015 | Updated: 16:26 EST, 21 September 2015

A 15-year-old California boy has pleaded not guilty to kidnapping, sexually assaulting and killing his eight-year-old neighbor.

Adrian Gonzalez is charged as an adult in the case of Madyson Middleton's brutal death in July. 

The little girl, who was found in a dumpster with stab wounds in her neck a day after she went missing, was due to turn nine this month. 

Astonishingly, Maddy's father Mike claims he has already 'forgiven' Gonzalez as he tries to 'keep the focus on' his daughter - his 'sweet angel' - who 'would not want hatred and anger'.

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Adrian Gonzalez (pictured in court on Monday) has pleaded not guilty to adult charges of murder and kidnap

Maddy Middleton (left) was found in a dumpster in July with stab wounds in her neck after allegedly being kidnapped and sexually assaulted. Her father Mike (right) told reporters on Monday he has forgiven Gonzalez

'Justice will happen regardless of what I think,' Mike Madison told reporters on Monday, as he revealed he did not attend the courthouse for Gonzalez's hearing, Mercury News reported.

'It's not up to me. I think Madyson would want it this way, would want for me to not have hatred and anger. You just don't want this to happen again.'

Gonzalez's public defender, Larry Biggam, told reporters that his job is to ensure Gonzalez receives a fair trial.

Madyson and Gonzalez both lived at the Tannery Arts Center, a housing complex for artists in the beach town of Santa Cruz.

She was reported missing on July 26 and her body was discovered inside a recycling bin the following night after an extensive search.

Police say the teen lured Madyson into his family's apartment with ice cream. An autopsy shows she died of asphyxiation and stab wounds to the neck. 

He made his first court appearance at the end of July. 

In the lead-up to Gonzalez’s first court appearance, a source revealed to the San Francisco Chronicle that that the suspect, who was Maddy's neighbor, drew her to his third-floor apartment with the promise of ice cream.

Once the girl was inside, Gonzalez allegedly restrained her from behind, tied her up with duct tape and raped her before strangling the child to death.

While police have not said anything about a possible motive, the source claimed that Gonzalez had been suicidal and allegedly killed Maddy because he wanted to see how people would react. 

'Awkward yo-yoer': Gonzalez, 15, pictured in an image from his now-defunct Instagram page under the user name 'awkwardyoyoer,' was described as a quiet kid known in the neighborhood for his prowess with the toy

Teenage angst: A search of Adrian’s now-defunct Instagram account painted a portrait of a disturbed young man possibly suffering from depression

Dark thoughts: In recent weeks, Gonzalez posted a series of cryptic messages hinting at his inner turmoil. Some of his posts talked about death and his fear of being alone  

Katie Carole, a friend of Gonzalez’s from middle school who attended his first court appearance today, told San Jose Mercury that the boy she knew simple as ‘A.J.’ was quiet and shy, but depressed.

She recounted that before she broke off their friendship two years ago, Gonzalez would call her in the middle of the night and threaten to jump off the roof.

Carole said that both she and her mother tried to convince Gonzalez to get psychiatric help.

After learning of the allegations against the rising high school sophomore, Carole went through Gonzalez’s text messages to her, one of which read: ’I’ll be gone eventually.’

Another missive she had received read: ‘something big will happen in high school. ’

Madyson Middleton, known to everyone as ‘Maddy,’ was reported in late July and was found dead in a recycling bin at the apartment complex a day later. 

In custody: Gonzalez was arrested while watching detectives near the bin where Middleton's body was found

In court: Adrian Gonzalez, center, is flanked by public defender Larry Biggam and attorney Leila Sayar as they enter the courtroom on July 30, 2015 for his arraignment in Santa Cruz, California

It has since been revealed that her suspected killer allegedly duct taped, raped, strangled and stabbed the child before throwing her body in the trash.

Gonzalez is facing a half-dozen felony charges, including murder with special circumstances, kidnapping with special circumstances, and four counts of sexual assault.

One of the assault counts mentions use of a deadly weapon as an aggravated circumstance, reported the station KRON4.

A search of Adrian’s now-defunct Instagram account painted a portrait of a disturbed young man, possibly suffering from depression, who may have been harboring suicidal thoughts. 

In recent weeks, Gonzalez posted a series of cryptic messages hinting at his inner turmoil, according to reporting by the New York Times. 

'Wears all black to try and look powerful and hide the crippling anxiety,' he wrote of himself in one post. 'Towards the future and the constant worry that I’ll never find someone who loves me.'

The last message appeared on the page the day Maddy was discovered dead. The post included a video showing what appeared to be Gonzalez's fingers on a keyboard playing the song 'Mad World' by the band Tears for Fears.

Murdered: Madyson 'Maddy' Middleton vanished from her apartment block in Santa Cruz, California. Her body was found in a nearby recycling bin

The clip was accompanied by a post that included lyrics from the song’s refrain: 'The dreams in which I’m dying are the best I ever had.'

Mad World famously appeared on the soundtrack of the 2001 cult classic Donnie Darko, which tells the story of a troubled teenager who is tormented by visions of a giant rabbit that manipulates him into committing a series of crimes.

Since Gonzalez's arrest, more information has emerged about his behavior during the search for Maddy.

Neighbors said the 15-year-old, who was known in the area for his prowess with a yo-yo, showed unusual interest in the case and kept asking searchers about the missing girl.

Neighbor Setorro Garcia told San Jose Mercury said that Gonzalez seemed obsessed with Maddy's disappearance.

At one point, Garcia recalled that he told the teenager: 'Dude, you're the only one asking me.'

Other residents in the tight-knigt artist's community were taken aback by both the child's brutal murder and Adrian's arrest. 

Sources say that the shy and somewhat reclusive teenager lured Maddy to his apartment when no one was home, restrained her with duct tape and raped her, after which he allegedly strangled the child and disposed of the body by dumping it in a garbage bin downstairs. 

‘He's a very, very nice boy,’ 60-year-old Geoffrey Nelson, who lives on the same floor as the teen, told the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper. ‘He is known for being really great with the yo-yo.’ 

As Gonzalez was being taken into custody Monday, his mother rushed at police officers in floods of tears, asking why her son was being hauled away in handcuffs.   

Terrance Kelly told the San Francisco Chronicle: 'From what I know, he's very well spoken and has a very kind manner. 'It's just a shocking situation altogether.'  

The suspect and Middleton were neighbors at the Tannery Arts complex, a public-private nonprofit project that includes 100 affordable loft apartments for artists and their families, a cafe and dance and art studios. 

Police had been using scent-specific K-9s from the Office of Emergency Services to hunt for Madyson, who was nicknamed Maddy.

Madyson's mother Laura Jordan told KRON4 on Monday afternoon: 'I can't explain how how difficult this is'

She was last seen riding her scooter on video surveillance at 4.12pm on Sunday in (above)

She was last seen riding her scooter in the Tannery Arts Center courtyard and was reported missing at 6pm

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