The body of 17-year-old Lital Yael Melnik was found Saturday morning in Kiryat Motzkin in northern Israel.
Melnik a resident of the northern city of Or Akiva, was found partially buried at a construction site near Hay Park. According to Israel Hayom, the body was initially noticed by the park's security officer, who reported it to the police.
Police have arrested a 49-year-old Kiryat Motzkin resident who works in a psychiatric hospital in Tirat Hacarmel and who was acquainted with Melnik on suspicion of murder. According to Israel Hayom, Melnik suffered mental health issues and in the past was hospitalized in the same institution where the suspect works.
The suspect will be brought to the Haifa Magistrates Court for an extension of his arrest.
Israel Police have opened an investigation and are gathering evidence from the scene, and the background and circumstances are being examined.
Israel Hayom quoted a senior police official as saying that among the evidence found are proofs connecting the suspect to the incident. In addition, the investigation showed that he met Melnik before she was murdered, and that she was alive and spent time in the suspect's apartment a few hours before her body was found.
Melnik's parents and most of her family live abroad. She was reported missing on Friday morning by her grandmother, who knew about her relationship with the suspect and worried that she had fallen victim to him.
In a statement, Israel Police said that they are investigating "a suspicion of murder in Kiryat Motzkin, in which a human body was found partially buried near a construction site in the city. A short time ago a suspect was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the act."
"Large forces of police under the command of the Asher Region Commander, Brigadier General Shaul Tzemach, arrived at the scene of the event and worked together with professional bodies, including forensics investigators, as part of the investigation which has been opened. Initial analysis of the scene has led to the suspicion that a woman whose identity is not yet known was murdered."