Man accused of kidnapping, murdering 10-year-old girl in Rockford pleads not guilty

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WLS) -- The man accused of kidnapping and murdering a 10-year-old in Rockford pleaded not guilty on Tuesday.

Antonio Monroe, of Blue Island, was charged with murder after a child was found unresponsive outside a Rockford home on July 8, police said.

A woman called Rockford police officers just after noon, saying her 6-year-old daughter told her a man took her 10-year-old sister.

Someone flagged down officers at about 12:40 p.m., telling them he found an unresponsive girl outside an abandoned home in the 1200-block of Ninth Avenue.

Officers found the child and administered CPR. The Rockford Fire Department transported the girl, later identified as Destiny Huggins, to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Police then found a man who matched the suspect description near Ninth Street and Woodruff Avenue. Officers took the man, later identified as 44-year-old Monroe, a registered sex offender, into custody after a brief struggle.

Monroe has been charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery by strangulation and two counts of kidnapping in the Rockford case. He will be back in Winnebago County Court on Sept. 1 for a status hearing.

Schaumburg police believe Monroe is also connected to a death investigation in the northern suburbs.

Police said Natalie Negray was found dead in a hotel room July 5 in the 1200-block of Bank Drive. Her manner of death is still under review.

Schaumburg police have been working with Rockford police as evidence suggests Monroe was with Negray before her body was found.

The video in the player above is from a previous report.