By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has released more information in the case involving 18-year-old Haleigh Green as authorities continue searching for a suspect wanted in connection with her death.

Preliminary reports from the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences indicate the body investigators discovered near Green’s car in unincorporated Shelby County on July 11 was Green based on dental records, and that she was shot, SCSO Lt. Clay Hammac said on July 17.

“The Alabama Department of Forensics did release a tentative I.D. of the victim indicating the victim is indeed Haleigh Green,” Hammac said. “That I.D. is tentative at this time and will not be confirmed by the ADFS until they have developed a DNA profile, which is standard procedure in cases like this. They also indicated that a contributing cause of death is gunshot wound.”

The SCSO and the United States Marshals Service and its nationwide fugitive task forces are engaged in an “active manhunt” for the suspect, 19-year-old Demarcus Lamar Means of Columbiana, Hammac said.

“We are using multiple law enforcement resources to try to find and apprehend Demarcus Means,” Hammac said. “We are continuing to receive multiple leads and tips from the community, and we are grateful for those.”

Crime Stoppers is currently offering up to a $5,000 cash reward for information leading to Means’ arrest.

Means is described in an SCSO press release as a “black male with shoulder-length braided hair” who is 6-foot-4 and 150 pounds.

Anyone with information on Means’ location is urged to call 911 immediately, and anyone in contact with him should consider him “armed and dangerous,” the release read.

To report information regarding the case, contact Crime Stoppers at (205) 254-7777.

Anonymous tips can be left on the SCSO Secret Witness line at (205) 669-9116.

The SCSO, with the assistance of the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, obtained a murder warrant on July 14 for Means related to Green’s death. The bond for the charge is set at $500,000.

Green was reported missing on July 7 after she failed to show up for her classes at Lawson State.

SCSO investigators discovered Green’s 2003 red Ford Mustang in a wooded area near Shelby County 315 on the morning of July 11.

Within the immediate area of Green’s Mustang, investigators located a deceased body after an “extensive” search, according to Shelby County Sheriff John Samaniego.

In a video statement released on July 15, Samaniego said investigators “have been working around the clock following a number of leads in order to find Haleigh” since her disappearance.

Shelby County District Attorney Jill Lee commended the SCSO and assisting agencies for “their tireless effort in locating Haleigh Green, gathering evidence and identifying the accused in this case.”

“While the accused remains innocent until proven guilty, please know that the office of the district attorney will likewise work tirelessly to see that justice is done in this case,” Lee said. “I and all the members of my staff extend our condolences to both Haleigh Green’s family and to her friends.”

A candlelight vigil for Green is planned for Saturday, July 18 at 6 p.m. at Shelby Iron Park in Shelby.