Idaho baby found dead a day after Amber Alert was issued, father in custody: Authorities
A baby in Idaho was found dead by his father's car a day after an Amber Alert was issued for him, authorities say.
Bonneville County Sheriff's Department issued an Amber Alert for 10-month-old Zeke Best on Friday. His father, Jeremy Best, 48, was suspected of kidnapping him.
The Teton County Sheriff's Department had been searching for the baby since Thursday night when they responded to open line 911 call from his home in Victor, Idaho.
Dispatchers sent deputies after hearing a disturbance through the call. When they arrived they found Best's wife Kali Jean Randall, 38 , dead on the scene. Her death is being investigated as a homicide and deputies believed Best fled with his 10-month-old son.
Baby found dead, father found naked nearby
At around 9:15 a.m. on Saturday, police received a call from hunters that man was in a sleeping bag on the side of the road near Kepps Crossing Rd, about 20 miles east of Idaho Falls. The hunters said the man was naked and making odd statements.
Responding deputies identified the man as Best, and put him in a patrol car until an ambulance arrived. They also found his black Chevy SUV, down an embankment off the roadway and Zeke dead on the scene.
"Our thoughts are with the family of the victims involved in this case," the Bonneville County Sheriff's Department said.
Best was booked into jail in connection to his wife's death, after being medically cleared. He'll remain in Bonneville County Jail until his arraignment hearing.
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Suspect transported to medical center morning of wife's death
According to a press release from Bonneville County Sheriff's Department, about 12 hours before his wife was found dead, Best was found walking around the Swan Valley General Store naked at around noon on Thursday. He had been transported to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center by ambulance, but it's unclear exactly when he'd been released from the medical center.
"There was not an indication at that time his behavior would continue, escalate, pause, change, or stop - which is why he was taken to the appropriate place, the hospital, for evaluation," the Bonneville County Sheriff's Department said in a Facebook comment.
"We can’t discuss nor do we know what kind of action was taken at the hospital, other than to say with everyone we’ve dealt with in similar situations our experience has been they are taken care of appropriately and to the best of their ability, as much as patients and family members will cooperate in that effort. We must work within the bounds of the law in every situation based on what we know at the time."
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Idaho baby found dead after Amber Alert issued, authorities say
