Mother’s boyfriend arrested in killing of California girl, 8

MERCED, Calif. (AP) — Police have arrested a suspect in the death of an 8-year-old girl whose body was found last March inside a central California home after the child was reported missing. Prosecutors and police say Dhante Jackson was taken into custody Saturday in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Newark on suspicion of killing Sophia Mason. Jackson was in a relationship with the young victim’s mother, 30-year-old Samantha Johnson, who was arrested in March and has pleaded not guilty to murder and child abuse. The 34-year-old Jackson faces similar charges. It’s not known Sunday if he has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.