FBI looking for mother of dead 8-year-old

BOONVILLE, Mo. -- The FBI has been searching for the mother of an 8-year-old girl who was found dead near Boonville, the agency said Saturday.

The FBI has been trying to find Janice Marie Owen, 43, since Tuesday, FBI special agent Jeff Lanza said. He said Owen's daughter, Alyssa Owen, was found dead Tuesday along a gravel road about eight miles north of Boonville.

Lanza said the child was last seen Monday afternoon getting off a school bus at her home in Boonville. Mrs. Owen was seen a couple of hours later talking to a man parked in a white car in front of her home, he said.

The Cooper County sheriff's office was assisting with the investigation, Lanza said.