Body ‘stuffed’ in closet believed to be missing 5-year-old, CO cops say. Mom arrested
After a grandmother called 911 worried about the well-being of her granddaughter, Colorado police said they believe they have found the body of a missing 5-year-old girl.
The out-of-state grandmother called police on Tuesday, May 30, after her 27-year-old daughter “made concerning statements” in text messages, causing her to worry about the safety of her 5-year-old granddaughter, the Aurora Police Department said in a June 1 news release.
McClatchy News is not naming the mother to protect the child’s identity.
The woman told the grandmother and investigators she had put the girl up for adoption, Interim Police Chief Art Acevedo said at a June 1 news conference.
She, however, could not provide documentation the girl had been adopted, police said.
Police were not able to verify an adoption in the area and confirmed the mother’s “statements were absolutely false,” Acevedo said.
This led to the mother’s initial arrest on counts of “attempting to influence a public servant,” police said.
After obtaining search warrants, Acevedo said officers searched the mother’s apartment and found a child ‘s remains.
Acevedo said the remains could not positively be identified because of their condition.
“It was tough to see our cops that had to find that little angel in the condition they found her in,” Acevedo said. “We are highly confident this is going to be our missing child.”
After the remains were found, additional charges were filed against the mother, including “child abuse resulting in death, tampering with a deceased human body and tampering with physical evidence,” according to police.
Acevedo said he anticipates the mother will also face a murder charge “in the very near future.”
Though the grandmother lost a grandchild and now a daughter, Acevedo said she “did the right thing.”
“Thanks to her, her courage and her love, that little child wound up being able to get a proper burial sooner rather than later instead of being stuffed in some closet,” he said.
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