Rebecca Ruud is the biological mother of Savannah Leckie. She hails from Park Rapids, Minnesota. ^{[undefined] [undefined] [undefined]}

On August 21, 2017, Ruud was arrested by Ozark County deputies at a Greyhound bus station in Springfield, Minnesota in connection to the death of her daughter Savannah Leckie. Ruud had purchased a ticket to leave the area and had three large pieces of luggage in her possession. ^{[1] [undefined]}

Ruud first reported Savannah missing on July 20, 2017, asking for help in searching via social media even before contacting the sheriff’s department.

Searchers from the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department, the Theodosia Area Volunteer Fire Department, the Baxter County (Ark.) Sheriff’s Department and other agencies searched several days for the missing teenager.

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At the time, Ruud told officers a brush fire had gotten out of control the night before she reported Savannah missing. Ruud said she had been burned and Savannah felt guilty for the fire and ran away. ^{[undefined] [undefined]}

She was charged on August 22, 2017, with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, abuse or neglect of a child resulting in death, tampering with physical evidence in a case and abandoning a corpse without notifying authorities. ^{[undefined] [undefined]}