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Remains found in search for N.C. teacher; boyfriend arrested

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Police say they have arrested the boyfriend of a missing teacher and are charging him with murder after a body was found in southwest Charlotte.

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BiancaTanner CBS affiliate WBTV

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Rodney Monroe said the body was found around 4:30 a.m. Thursday in a wooded area in the city's Steele Creek neighborhood during a search for missing 31-year-old Bianca Tanner, reports CBS affiliate WBTV. Officers arrested boyfriend Angelo Grayson Smith Jr. shortly after making the discovery.

Monroe said a witness tipped police to the possible location of the body around midnight.

"Let me be clear," Monroe told reporters at a press conference Thursday morning. "At this point, we only have remains." He said the medical examiner will have to make an identification of the body.

Police say Smith was the last person known to have seen Tanner, on June 7, before she disappeared. The suspect previously told police Tanner left their apartment after an argument. It was not clear if Smith has an attorney.

Smith was arrested last week in Chicago on a charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. He was extradited back to Charlotte and posted bail Wednesday, according to WBTV. Monroe said Smith was always a person of interest in the case and had been misleading investigators.

According to the station, Smith told reporters "I'm sorry" when asked what he'd like to say to Tanner's family on Tuesday after being interviewed by police.

Authorities have been searching for Tanner since June 8. The body has been sent to the North Carolina Medical Examiner's Office for positive identification. The search was carried out by officers and a K-9 unit from the York County, S.C., Sheriff's Office.

Tanner had recently moved to Charlotte from Greensboro with her 3-year-old son.

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