Friends, community rally around Rockford family of slain 10-year-old girl with GoFundMe

Chris Green, Rockford Register Star
Updated ·2 min read
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A GoFundMe account seeking $15,000 to help pay for funeral expenses for 10-year-old Destiny Huggins is well on its way to surpassing its goal.

The fundraiser created Sunday has surpassed $12,000 as of Tuesday morning.

Huggins was the girl who was playing outside her Rockford home Saturday afternoon when police say she was abducted by a man and murdered.

Whitney Rouse, a friend of the family who established the GoFundMe account, said Destiny's favorite colors were pink and purple. She was looking forward to playing basketball in middle school and had aspirations of being nurse, Rouse said.

In a news conference Sunday, Rockford Police Chief Carla Redd said Destiny and her 6-year-old sister were outside playing when a man allegedly took both girls.

Redd said the 6-year-old was able to get away and tell her mom that her sister had been taken. Redd said the mother called police at 12:07 p.m. to report the kidnapping.

More: Illinois man, registered sex offender charged in the death of 10-year-old Rockford girl

Destiny Huggins is the 10-year-old Rockford girl who police say was abducted and killed by a Chicago area man July 8, 2023.
Destiny Huggins is the 10-year-old Rockford girl who police say was abducted and killed by a Chicago area man July 8, 2023.

About a half hour later, police were called after a man found Destiny unresponsive outside of a residence in the 1200 block of 10th Avenue. First responders performed CPR and rushed the child to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Meanwhile, a K9 officer was able to help locate the man a few blocks from the scene.

Antonio Monroe, 44, of Blue Island, has been charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, two counts of kidnapping and one count of aggravated battery via strangulation. Monroe was arrested after a brief struggle. He was taken to the hospital for an unrelated issue, Redd said, and will be taken to the Winnebago County Jail once he's released from the hospital.

Monroe is listed on the Illinois State Police Sex Offender Registry after being convicted of criminal sexual assault 13 years ago in Peoria County.

Chris Green: 815-987-1241; cgreen@rrstar.com; @chrisfgreen

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: GoFundMe for slain 10-year-old girl flooded with donations on day one