BIG SPRING, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) — A private investigator working the 2010 disappearance and death of 13-year-old Hailey Dunn says Shawn Adkins has been arrested and charged with murder.

Shawn Adkins, a man who has long been considered a person of interest in the disappearance and murder of Hailey Dunn, who went missing in 2010 and was found dead in 2013, has been arrested and charged with murder.

Howard County Jail records indicate that Adkins is currently jailed on a $2 million bond.

A private investigator assigned to the Hailey Dunn case tells BigCountryHomepage.com that the arrest is connected to her disappearance and death.

Mugshot of suspect Shawn Adkins, charged with Murder for the death of 13-year-old Hailey Dunn. (Howard County)

Adkins was Hailey’s mother’s boyfriend at the time of her disappearance.

Hailey, a 13-year-old cheerleader in Colorado City, went missing in December 2010. In 2013, her remains were found near Lake JB Thomas in Scurry County.

In January 2017, Hailey would finally be laid to rest. In the intervening years, Adkins would be the only person named by investigators as a person of interest.

Mugshot of suspect Shawn Adkins, charged with Murder for the death of 13-year-old Hailey Dunn. (Mitchell County)

Adkins maintained his innocence, and in an interview early in the process in 2011, he begged for Hailey to come home.

“Hailey, I hope you come home safe really soon. You’ve been gone way too long. We all miss you, and we all love you.”

The only previous arrest in the case was not Adkins, but of Hailey’s mother, Billie, when police accused her of lying about Shawn’s whereabouts. That arrest came in 2011.

Law enforcement agencies have not commented on the arrest or its connection to Hailey Dunn’s death.