Aided by a tip from a television news crew in Oklahoma City, police there on Monday arrested the former boyfriend of a 17-year-old Renton girl who was found stabbed to death inside her home Friday morning.

The Renton Police Department said Jarod Lane, 19, had been on the run since Friday morning, when authorities found the body of Jessica Scholl in her family's burning house in Renton.

Authorities and friends had said the two had dated for a couple of years and that Lane had seemed distraught over their recent breakup.

Renton police Detective Robert Onishi said on Monday that two Renton detectives flew to Oklahoma Monday night to question Lane about Scholl's death and the fire at her family's house.

Authorities had been looking for Lane since Friday morning, when firefighters recovered Scholl's body on the second floor of the home in the 12700 block of Southeast 164th Street in Renton. On Friday, Lane was seen headed east from a North Bend gas station. On Sunday, he was spotted at a Walgreens in Enid, north of Oklahoma City, but had left the store before authorities arrived.

On Monday, his green Mazda Protégé was found in the town of Guthrie, about 30 miles north of Oklahoma City, likely abandoned because it had run out of gas, authorities said.

By the afternoon, a news crew from KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City that was working on the story saw a young man who fit Lane's description walking along a roadway. The crew called authorities, who made the arrest. A video posted at the station's website shows that Lane put up no resistance, asking only for a bottle of water.

According to friends, Lane, who attended Renton Technical College, went to a Lindbergh High School prom with Scholl last year, but the couple broke up on May 16. On his Facebook page, Lane had written that he had "fallen for a girl" and that he "wouldn't want it any other way for the rest of my life."

On Sunday, Renton police sent out a statement from Scholl's family announcing that there would be a candlelight vigil at Lindbergh High later in the evening.

"We want to thank everyone for their outpouring of support," the family's statement read in part. "Your prayers and thoughts have brought us comfort during this time of tragedy. We want to thank Jessica's classmates and teachers and all of our friends for helping us remember her. We are especially grateful to the Renton Police and Fire Departments for their response and thoroughness in their work."

The family said it needed time to heal and would not be making further comments.

Tan Vinh: 206-515-5656 or tvinh@seattletimes.com. On Twitter @tanvinhseattle.