A 16-year-old West Virginia girl who disappeared earlier this month has been found dead, and authorities have confirmed her death is a homicide.

Shayln Shantel Harvey was last seen May 2 in the Big Chimney area of Kanawha County. An autopsy performed on Monday positively identified human remains discovered inside a residence on Offutt Drive in Big Chimney as belonging to Harvey, according to the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office.

Her stepfather, James Warren Truman, is already jailed on child sex abuse charges connected to the teenager — and he is the same person who reported her missing two days after she was last seen.

Stepfather Faces Sex Abuse Charges

Truman was taken into custody, just days after reporting his stepdaughter as missing. He was charged with one incest count and one count of sexual abuse by a parent, guardian, custodian, or other trusted adult to a child.

According to court records, his criminal complaint states he admitted to committing child sex crimes that “mostly occurred in April at the Big Chimney property.”

Truman waived his preliminary hearing and remains incarcerated at the South Central Regional Jail on a cash-only bail of $100,000. Chief Deputy Sean Snuffer confirmed to local media that Truman’s arrest was connected to the investigation into Harvey’s disappearance, though sheriff’s officials repeatedly declined to publicly link the criminal case to her death while the search was active.

Remains Discovered After Search Warrant Executed

Deputies executed a search warrant at the Offutt Drive residence where Harvey lived with her mother and stepfather. Snuffer said at a press conference that authorities had obtained and were executing a search warrant as they looked for any evidence related to Shayln’s whereabouts.

He added that cadaver dogs from the West Virginia Search and Rescue had been brought in and were actively assisting on the property. The property had drawn law enforcement attention before, but this time, investigators arrived with a specific mission and additional resources.

By the end of the day, human remains had been found on the property. They were transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for examination and identification. Days later, the autopsy confirmed what investigators feared: the remains were Harvey’s.

Investigation Shifts From Missing Person to Homicide

Sgt. Jeremy Burns said the investigation initially began as a missing person case, but as detectives continued their work, new details pointed them in a different direction. Investigators dug into the circumstances surrounding her disappearance, with detectives following leads that pointed inside the home where Harvey lived with her mother and stepfather.

Those developments led authorities to obtain a search warrant for the property, where they ultimately discovered the remains of Shayln Harvey.

Authorities have so far declined to disclose how Harvey died, citing the pending work of the medical examiner. The sheriff’s office said in its release announcing the identification that the cause of death will not be made public until the examiner’s findings are complete.

“This homicide investigation remains active and ongoing. Investigators will continue conducting interviews, processing evidence, and following up on all leads associated with this case,” the sheriff’s office said.

Harvey’s death marks the third reported homicide in Kanawha County in 2026. Officials extended condolences to Harvey’s family and friends and indicated additional information would be released as it becomes available.

Whether Truman will face additional charges in connection with her death remains unclear. The sheriff’s office refused to comment publicly on any link between her killing and the man already jailed on sex abuse charges tied to her — even as the basic facts of the case grow harder to ignore: a 16-year-old girl reported missing by the same stepfather who, days later, would be accused of abusing her, found dead inside the home they shared.

The teenager’s disappearance had drawn community attention across the Big Chimney area, with neighbors and family hoping for a different outcome. The discovery on Offutt Drive, and the autopsy results that followed, closed that possibility.

Anyone with information related to the case is asked to contact the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau at 304-357-0556 or leave a tip on the department’s website at kanawhasheriff.us.