Police have found the remains of what is thought to be three-year-old Kamille 'Cupcake' McKinney, following her abduction at a pal's birthday party.
The toddler was reportedly snatched after being lured away from the celebration in Birmingham, Alabama, by a trail of sweets.
Patrick Devone Stallworth, 39, and his partner Derick Irisha Brown, 29, were arrested on suspicion of grabbing the girl - and it now looks like they will be charged with her murder.
Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith said officers have found what they believe are Kamille's remains in a rubbish bin at a landfill site, reports say.
According to The Sun , he said: "We found the remains of a child that we believe to be Kamille.
"We believe that this was something that they (Stallworth and Brown) thought about, and acted upon.
“They saw an opportunity to take a young child, which they did."
Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin tweeted: "Kamille McKinney is gone. Ripped away from her family.
"The pain her family is enduring right now is unimaginable. Know that whomever perpetrated this crime will be brought to justice and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
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"Tonight, Birmingham, we mourn as one. Uplift this family. Uplift your own families. Hold your loved ones a little tighter.
"And to the family of Kamille, know that your pain, your anger, and your many questions will not be ignored. Your cries for help will not go unanswered."
Police previously released surveillance footage which shows Kamille and her pal in the minutes before her disappearance.
They both appear to be leaning over and picking up items in the video, before being approached by a man who talks to them.
The pair then follow the individual down the road and out of the camera's view.
Her traumatised parents previously pleaded with her kidnappers to release the girl and end their pain.
"Drop her off anywhere and let her out. Somebody will see her. Everybody knows what's going on," her father Dominic McKinney told CNN .
"That will be the end of that. We just want the baby back."
Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith offered a $20,000 reward for information that would help police solve the case.
"You could literally call with your tip today, pick up your money in cash next week and you're totally anonymous," said Frank Barefield, chairman of Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama.
"There's no better deal in town than that."