Photos courtesy of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
The search efforts will continue this week to find three missing boys in Morenci, Michigan. About 500 citizens gathered last night for a tree lighting in their community, but many say the gathering was really a tribute to the brothers.
This strange story unraveled nearly two weeks ago when the children went missing about 75 miles southwest of Detroit on the Ohio-Michigan border. Their father, John Skelton, told police he handed his children, 5-year-old Tanner, 7-year-old Alexander and 9-year-old Andrew off to a woman named Joann Taylor. Police say there’s a good chance Joann does not exist, even though Skelton claims he met her on the Internet four years ago.
The children were reported missing by their mother Tanya the day after Thanksgiving when they didn’t return home. The children’s parents are currently separated and going through a divorce and custody battle. Skelton allegedly tried to commit suicide by hanging himself and he claims that he gave the children up before his attempted suicide, investigators are doubting that story as well.
Investigators announced the Amber Alert initially activated for a missing 10-year-old girl has been canceled. The investigation has now shifted to a homicide investigation. Zahra Clare Baker was just reported missing over the weekend, but authorities indicate there is a chance she hasn’t been seen over the last month.
This story has captured national attention for a number of reasons. The Amber Alert is initially what drew the nation into this case, but Zahra’s medical conditions made many hearts break. Zahra is a bone cancer survivor, uses hearing aids and has a prosthetic leg to walk. This child has endured enough in her lifetime and to think that she may have been killed is a lot for her family, community and folks who have never met her to understand.
Zahra’s stepmother, Elisa Baker, is currently behind bars; not for Zahra’s disappearance, but for obstruction of justice in this case. She had a court appearance earlier today. Authorities say Baker admitted to writing a ransom note found inside the family home after Zahra was reported missing. Burke County Sheriff John McDevitt and his team are working to figure out exactly how long Zahra has been missing by closing in a timeline.
Want to be alerted when a child is abducted? I encourage you to sign up for free via wireless Internet. It is easy, all you have to do is text the word AMBER followed by a space and your 5-digit zipcode to 26237.
If you don’t feel comfortable texting, you can always sign up on-line.
According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited children, the first three hours a child is abducted are the most critical to recovery efforts. This is a fantastic initiative to reach 200 million wireless subscribers. About 200-250 Amber Alerts are activated each year, and more than 400 children have been safely recovered because of the program.
Today marks the 12th annual Florida Missing Children’s Day. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and hundreds of families gathered this morning for the 2010 ceremony. The event honors missing children throughout the state, highlights new efforts underway to help protect the youth and honors adults who make a difference in the lives of children.
Many kids participated in abduction prevention activities across the state including fingerprinting and watching educational videos. Over the weekend, citizens may have noticed electronic billboards lighting up with information about the awareness campaign.
The United States Department of Justice reports about 797,500 children were reported missing within a one-year period of time. That’s roughly 2,185 children that go missing every single day. 115 of those are victims of stereotypical kidnapping.
UPDATE: Investigators say a person of interest in the Alisa Maier abduction shot himself yesterday when authorities closed in on him. Police were tipped off to convicted sex offenderPaul S. Smith’s whereabouts when a relative told them where he was staying. Reports are conflicting, but now indicate that Smith has died at the hospital. Investigators are searching for physical evidence to positively link Smith to Alisa’s abduction. More details to come on this case…
Stranger abductions are not as common as we think, but when they happen it feels like the entire nation knows about it through the news and social media. If there is a car description, an Amber Alert is usually attached to the announcement along with a suspect description. That was the case with little Alisa Maier from Missouri. She is only 4-years-old and investigators say she was snatched from her front yard two days ago by a stranger. Alisa was playing in her front yard with her brother when the abduction occurred, and their mother jumped into her vehicle and tried to chase the abductor down. The FBI from St. Louis and investigators from surrounding counties quickly joined forces to create a command post and follow up with every lead to help find Alisa. Members of the community met at the local Elk’s Lodge and volunteered their time going door-to-door passing out fliers with Alisa’s face and information on them. The first 48 hours in an abduction arethe most crucial. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, since 1997 the Amber Alert program is credited with the safe recovery of 502 children. There are 120 active amber plans in check across the country.
This swift effort by the community and the authorities in and around Louisiana, Missouri should be commended, because their efforts worked. I received an e-mail around 3:45 a.m. this morning from FBI S.A. Rebecca Wu that said Alisa was found late last night wandering around a car wash in Fenton, Missouri. Someone saw a small child, they believed to be a boy, and made contact with “him.”
Stranger abductions are not as common as we think, but when they happen it feels like the entire nation knows about it through the news and social media. If there is a car description, an Amber Alert is usually attached to the announcement along with a suspect description. That was the case with little Alisa Maier from Missouri. She is only 4-years-old and investigators say she was snatched from her front yard two days ago by a stranger. Alisa was playing in her front yard with her brother when the abduction occurred, and their mother jumped into her vehicle and tried to chase the abductor down. The FBI from St. Louis and investigators from surrounding counties quickly joined forces to create a command post and follow up with every lead to help find Alisa. Members of the community met at the local Elk’s Lodge and volunteered their time going door-to-door passing out fliers with Alisa’s face and information on them. The first 48 hours in an abduction arethe most crucial. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, since 1997 the Amber Alert program is credited with the safe recovery of 502 children. There are 120 active amber plans in check across the country.
This swift effort by the community and the authorities in and around Louisiana, Missouri should be commended, because their efforts worked. I received an e-mail around 3:45 a.m. this morning from FBI S.A. Rebecca Wu that said Alisa was found late last night wandering around a car wash in Fenton, Missouri. Someone saw a small child, they believed to be a boy, and made contact with “him.”
3:52 a.m. - Great news this morning…. I just received word from the FBI that Alisa was found alive a few hours ago. The child was wandering alone at a car wash in Fenton, Missouri. She was reuinted with her family a short time after midnight. There is still a manhunt to find the suspect who snatched Alisa from her home… more to come later this morning on this case.
I spoke with S.A. Billy Cox with the St. Louis FBI, and he confirms that the Amber Alert to find 4-year-old Alisa Maier is still active. He said the child was playing with her brother in the front yard of her Louisiana, Missouri home when she was snatched around 8 p.m. last night. Right now the FBI has a command post set up to assist the police department with fielding important leads. I spoke with Sally Hunt who lives in the area and is volunteering at the local Elk’s Lodge in Louisiana, Missouri. She said there are 130 volunteers in the field searching and passing out fliers right now. “There is a tremendous outpouring of support,” said Sally. Many of the volunteers are also going door-to-door.
I spoke with S.A. Billy Cox with the St. Louis FBI, and he confirms that the Amber Alert to find 4-year-old Alisa Maier is still active. He said the child was playing with her brother in the front yard of her Louisiana, Missouri home when she was snatched around 8 p.m. last night. Right now the FBI has a command post set up to assist the police department with fielding important leads. I spoke with Sally Hunt who lives in the area and is volunteering at the local Elk’s Lodge in Louisiana, Missouri. She said there are 130 volunteers in the field searching and passing out fliers right now. “There is a tremendous outpouring of support,” said Sally. Many of the volunteers are also going door-to-door.
The official autopsy report for 7-year-old Aja Johnson was hand delivered to her biological father J.J. Johnson on Friday. Six months after the little girl went missing, the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s office lists the child’s official cause of death as “violent death with possible neck injury.” The bodies of Aja Johnson and Lester Hobbs were located in a rural area in Norman, Oklahoma nine weeks after he abducted her. A law enforcement source on the ground told me that because of the decomposition, Hobbs and Aja most likely died about a week after the initial murder of Tonya Hobbs in January. “He got in that area, probably to lay low for a few days, got in there with the storm and maybe got trapped. One thing led to another, couldn’t get the vehicle out, and would have to walk out on foot… he chose to stay.” My source says Aja’s body was found outside the vehicle and Hobbs was found inside the car. The medical examiner’s report indicates Hobbs died from drinking antifreeze, and there were not any signs of antifreeze in Aja Johnson.
Shaniya Davis is one of those cases that comes up in conversation frequently. I am often asked how a child could allegedly be sold by her mother as a sex slave to pay off a debt. If Shaniya was never passed off to Mario McNeill like a piece of trash, she may still be alive today. Test results show Shaniya died from asphyxiation, and McNeill is charged with first degree murder and first degree rape. He is being held without bond and is currently behind bars. Shaniya’s mother, Antoniette Davis, is charged with child abuse in the form of prostitution, human trafficking, obstructing an official investigation and filing a false police report. Unfortunately, Davis is out on bond, and has been roaming free since February 21st. She is scheduled to appear in court on June 3, 2010 to face charges.
Bradley Lockhart, Shaniya’s father, is taking a proactive approach to combat child prostitution and crimes against children. This is why he created Shaniya Speaks. The organization says the goal is, “to bring voice to Child Exploitation and Sexual Crimes against Children.” Bradley will tour the country and be the voice for his murdered child. He will use his personal experience to educate the public on these types of horrific crimes against children.
Michelle Sigona is a crime fighting, victims advocate extraordinaire, but for Michelle -- the good fight doesn't stop there. In her spare time, she is a volunteer firefighter -- and now, she is tackling the issues and cases that mean the most to her....
Want to be alerted when a child is abducted? I encourage you to 
