Family confirms body of Madeline Kingsbury found north of Mabel

MABEL, Minn. (KTTC) – The family of Madeline Kingsbury confirmed Thursday afternoon that the body found north of Mabel on Wednesday is Madeline.

Madeline’s sister, Megan Kingsbury, released the following statement on behalf of their family:

“We’re relieved that Madeline has been found after months of intensive searching and grateful for the extraordinary efforts by law enforcement, other first responders and volunteers. We’re certain that the correct person has been arrested, will be appropriately charged, and convicted of his crimes. Things are moving in the right direction there and we look forward to getting justice for Madeline. For right now we will mourn as a family and properly and respectfully lay her to rest.”

The Winona Police Department held a press conference at 1 p.m. in Winona and released new details from the investigation.

Winona Police Chief Tom Williams said that the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner’s Office performed an autopsy Thursday morning and were able to confirm the remains were Madeline’s.

“To say the least the last 69 days have been frustrating, full of heartache and pain for the family, law enforcement and the community. During this time the family never gave up, law enforcement never gave up, the community never gave up,” Williams stated.

The remains were found Wednesday around 1:30 p.m. by a Fillmore County deputy in some brush off Highway 43. Remains were located using information generated during the Madeline Kingsbury investigation from an electronic tip.

The remains were found covered up and not visible in a wooded area that had been searched before.

After locating the remains, law enforcement personnel arrested Kingsbury’s former partner and father of her children, Adam Fravel, around 5:20 p.m. Wednesday on probable cause in connection to Kingsbury’s disappearance. He was arrested without incident at a home in Mabel.

Fravel is being held on second-degree murder with intent/not premeditated charge pending a court hearing. He is being held in the Winona County Jail.

WPD confirmed that the property that Kingsbury was found on was off a public roadway and not property of the Fravel family.

The BCA said they will not comment on any charges on Thursday.

The BCA also said there were more than 450 tips that were sent into them, including mountains of digital evidence.

The Fillmore County Sheriff’s Office said they continue to follow any tips and will now focus on assisting WPD to ensure an accurate and complete investigation is done.

“While this discovery is not what we were hoping for, we are thankful to be able to bring Maddi home to her family.”

You can watch the full news conference below:

Copyright 2023 KTTC. All rights reserved.