The uncle charged with the murder of his five-year-old niece led police to her dirt covered body just yards from her Utah home after he struck a deal to avoid the death penalty, it has been revealed.

Alex Whipple, 21, gave officers the information they needed to find little Elizabeth 'Lizzy' Shelley, who had been missing for five days, law enforcement say.

Logan Police Chief Gary Jensen said Wednesday the girl's body was buried in a heavily wooded area less than a block from her home. It is not thought Whipple had any connection the property where she was found.

Jensen confirmed that Whipple has helped with the investigation in return for the death penalty being taken off the table and a body, believed to be Lizzy's, was found at around 2pm local time.

After news of the grim discovery was made public family spokesman Jill Parker read a statement from Lizzy's mom Jessica, thanking the local community for their help in looking for her 'caring and giving' daughter.

It read in part: 'There are no words to express the sadness and the heartbreak we feel today. This did not end the way we wanted it to.'

Whipple's defense attorney, Shannon Demler, said the breakthrough came after he presented Whipple with the facts and evidence, News 2 reported.

'My client made the decision to disclose the location of the body to the authorities so the family, hopefully, could have some closure on that part of the case,' Demler said.

Logan Police Chief Gary Jensen said in an earlier press conference Wednesday that before the discovery of the girl's body her blood was found on a watch and a hooded sweatshirt belonging to Whipple.

He did not confirm the nature of Lizzie's death and said they are awaiting official positive identification but police strongly believe it is the body of the five-year-old.

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Alexander Whipple, 21, was charged with aggravated murder, child kidnapping, desecration of a human body, and obstruction of justice on Wednesday. He appears in court video on Tuesday

He led cops to the body of Elizabeth Shelley (pictured), who was last seen at 2am on Saturday in her Logan, Utah home and was missing when the family woke up the following morning

Police investigate a location on Center Street in Logan, Utah, as they search for the body of missing 5-year-old Elizabeth 'Lizzy' Shelley on Wednesday

The family released this statement through Lizzy's aunt on Wednesday thanking all the searchers and supporters

Elizabeth Shelley's great grandfather pictured as police searched for the girl in nearby homes

A man holds his head in his hands as police search for Elizabeth Shelley, 5, in the backyard of a home on Center Street in Logan, on Wednesday

Investigators also found a piece of PVC pipe in the parking lot of Bear River Charter School with a partial palm print in a red substance and it matched Whipple's hand, the charges state

The teal blue skirt she was last seen wearing was also recovered after being 'hastily buried' under bark and dirt near the family home.

Prosecutors said they also recovered a broken LivingKit kitchen knife with the girl's blood on it, matching a blade that had gone missing from the family home.

Investigators also found a piece of PVC pipe 50 yards away in the parking lot of Bear River Charter School with a partial palm print in a red substance believed to be blood. The find matched Whipple's hand, the charges state.

Whipple was charged with aggravated murder which is a capital offense. He was also charged with child kidnapping, a first-degree felony, desecration of a human body, a third-degree felony, and two counts of obstruction of justice.

A Zions Bank account was opened under the name Elizabeth Shelley Donation to collect funds as the family searches for Lizzy, the Cache County Attorney's office said Wednesday.

Investigators had been searching for the girl since Saturday morning.

Shelley's blood was found on uncle Alexander Whipple's hooded sweatshirt and watch when he was arrested Saturday, after being spotted on surveillance video at 6.46am that morning

In an interview with Fox 13 Now on Wednesday, Whipple's lawyer said the 21-year-old murder suspect came forward with information about the location of Lizzy's body out of concern for the family.

'He knows he’s done something that was terrible, unjustified and could never be fixed,' Demler said. 'We talked about it in depth and just felt it was appropriate that his family knew the location so they could put that part behind them… Not only that, there was a lot of people out searching for the body and things and I think it was just time to put that to sleep.'

Logan Police earlier had urged locals to check 'your cameras and smart doorbell systems' for images of his movements during their desperate search.

'We would never dash the hope that we would find her alive,' Jensen had said at a news conference. 'But it's certainly a concern for us at this point; Lizzy's safety.'

Utah police found DNA evidence linking Whipple, 21, (left) to the disappearance of his missing niece Shelley (right) after her blood was found on the skirt she was last seen in

Searchers (pictured Tuesday) scour the area for the missing child and Shelley's skirt was found 'hastily buried' under dirt on the grounds of a charter school near her home

Searchers (pictured Tuesday) also found the child's blood on a broken knife missing from the Utah family's kitchen. Whipple's hand print was also on a PVC pole discovered

Elizabeth was reported missing Saturday morning after her family woke up and the youngster was nowhere to be found.

The girl was last seen before family members went to bed about 2am and Whipple was staying at the house that night, despite not living there.

A little after 9am on Saturday, the family awoke and found that Elizabeth and Whipple were both missing.

Dark details have emerged of Whipple, a convicted felon, appearing disheveled as if he had 'been in a binge' the night of Elizabeth's disappearance.

Around 1.30pm on Saturday, Whipple stopped in a gas station in Hyrum alone where he purchased beer and cigarettes.

'Disheveled, like he had been on a binge of some kind,' Hyrum Shortstop employee Ryan Liljenquist told KSTU-TV. 'He was wearing a gray hoodie. Underneath that hoodie, was a kind of a suit and tie, something really weird.'

Logan Police Chief Gary Jensen walks away following a news conference Tuesday

Whipple is pictured on a surveillance camera on Friday May 24 before Shelley went missing

Police had urged the public to check home surveillance cameras for images of him

Alexander Whipple pictured above in images on Facebook. He was arrested on Saturday, found in a remote area about 10 miles from the family home where Elizabeth disappeared

Police have also been provided with surveillance footage from near the family's home that may show Whipple.

The video, taken at 6.46am on Saturday at 700 West and 100 South - about two blocks from the home - shows a man in a gray hoodie walking alone, Fox 13 reported. His pants appear wet or muddy from the knees down.

According to a probable cause affidavit, when Whipple was arrested, he had a metal baseball bat shoved in his back pocket and hidden under his jacket along his back - though cops say the bat is not part of the evidence in the disappearance.

Whipple was booked into Cache County Jail on Sunday for investigation of probation violations, failure to identify himself to police and possession of a controlled substance.

Elizabeth's mother, Jessica Whipple (left) and father Wes Shelley have both made appeals for the girl's safe return. The couple have been separated for several years

Cops found Whipple on Saturday afternoon in a remote area about 10 miles from the family home, several hours after the girl was reported missing, and reportedly with some of the girl's clothing in his hands.

He was combative and refused to identify himself several times when police spotted him walking in a remote area, according to court documents.

Police found him with a metal baseball bat, an unopened can of beer and drug paraphernalia, suspected marijuana.

Timeline of Elizabeth Shelley disappearance Evening of May 24: Alexander Whipple arrives at his sister Jessica's home in Logan to visit. May 25, 2am: Elizabeth is accounted for as the family goes to sleep. May 25, 6:46am: Surveillance footage shows a man that appears to be Whipple walking alone two blocks from the house. The man's pants appear wet or muddy from the knees down. 9am: Family members awake to find both Elizabeth and Whipple gone. 1.30pm: Whipple is spotted on foot at the Shortstop convenience store in Hyrum, about eight miles south from the home. He is alone and a clerk says he looks disheveled as if he's on a binge. He buys beer and cigarettes. 3pm: Cache County Sheriff's deputies locate and arrest Whipple in southern Cache Valley, 10 miles from the home. May 29, 11:50am: Whipple is charged with aggravated murder, child kidnapping and other counts 5pm: Police say they have found a body believed to be Lizzy in a heavily wooded area less than a block from her home Advertisement

In 2016, Whipple was convicted of assaulting his roommate in an incident of domestic violence, according to court records.

The same year, Whipple was arrested after police said he stole his neighbor's car and drove under the influence of alcohol. In that incident he led Utah High Patrol on a 40-mile chase that ended with authorities spiking the tires of the car, court documents show.

Whipple was sentenced to prison in March 2018 but his term was suspended, and he was instead ordered to serve 180 days in jail and five years of probation.

He was denied bail Tuesday during a court hearing in Logan in which he appeared via video in a dark blue jail uniform with his back slumped and his eyes cast downward, ABC News reported.

Whipple's next hearing is June 3.

The massive search for Elizabeth concentrated in a one-half mile (0.8 kilometer) area around the family's home in Logan, a mountain valley near the Idaho border about 80 miles north of Salt Lake City.

Nancy Buttars, 63, said crews searched along a river behind her house on Monday, walking up and down the banks and through underbrush, as well as along railroad tracks.

She said she had searched her property herself after hearing alerts about the missing girl.

On Monday evening locals gathered for a candlelight vigil for the missing girl

Locals gathered to light candles for Elizabeth, who was reported missing Saturday

A woman is pictured playing a candle onto a memorial following a vigil for the five-year-old

The Logan Police Department is asking the public to come forward if they saw Whipple or Elizabeth on Saturday, if they live in the Southwest part of Logan or along the area of 1200 West between Nibley and Hyrum.

For that same area, individuals should check their yards, buildings, containers and garbage cans for anything they don't recognize. Call 435-753-7555 with any information.