Four-year-old Maleah Davis died as a result of homicidal violence, according to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.

It remains to be seen whether the finding will raise new criminal charges against Derion Vence, who remains in custody on a charge of tampering with evidence, related to the girl's disappearance.

"Our team remains hard at work and is proceeding methodically and thoroughly," said Dane Schiller, spokesman of the Harris County District Attorney's Office. "We will present all the evidence to a grand jury to determine which criminal charges are warranted. We remain dedicated to finding the truth and delivering justice for Maleah and the entire community."

Vence's attorney, Dorian Cotlar, declined to comment regarding the cause of death.

A CITY MOURNS: What's next for the Maleah Davis case?

Police found the girl's body on May 31, discarded on the roadside in Fulton, Ark., after a nearly monthlong search that captivated the nation. The child was reported missing on May 4, when Vence, her mother's ex-fiance, arrived at a hospital with a story about being abducted on the way to the airport with Maleah and his then-1-year-old son. He said that when he woke up, his son was with him, but Maleah was gone.

His story became riddled with inconsistencies, authorities said, and he was later arrested on a charge of tampering with a corpse. Police found evidence of blood matching Maleah's DNA in his apartment, as well as surveillance video of Vence walking out the door with a heavy-looking laundry basket stuffed with a black plastic bag.

Community activist Quanell X obtained a jailhouse confession from Vence, who allegedly told him that he'd accidentally killed the child and dumped her body in southwest Arkansas. A roadside crew there accidentally hit the bag containing Maleah's body with a mower, scattering her remains.

Her body was flown back to Houston and was buried in a private service last weekend.

samantha.ketterer@chron.com