The search for Elijah Beau, a 3-year-old Wisconsin boy who went missing a month ago, continues, with authorities confirming Monday that personal items found early in the investigation were indeed his. did.
Elijah's red and white plaid blanket was found on a road about five miles from his apartment in Two Rivers, a city in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, and was last seen in February, according to social media posts. It was said that it was the 20th. According to local police.
The Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter on the USA TODAY Network reports that Two Rivers police did not provide details on when the blanket was found, but it was found on a road Feb. 25 during a search for the missing boy. Part of the road has been closed to traffic.
“We continue to request the public's assistance in searching all urban and rural areas, including water lines, to locate Elijah and find any evidence related to his disappearance,” the post said. I am.
Here's what you need to know about this:
Ilya's mother and boyfriend were indicted.
Elijah's mother, Katerina Baur, 31, and her boyfriend, Jesse Vann, 39, were charged in connection with felony child neglect, USA TODAY previously reported.
Manitowoc County District Attorney Jacalyn Labret said Elijah's mother sent him to Vann's home in Two Rivers for “disciplinary purposes.”
During questioning, Baur lied to police and said he was at his home in Wisconsin Dells, not Two Rivers, when Elijah went missing.
“She intentionally sent the child home for over a week for disciplinary reasons,” Labret said in a statement in court. “I was aware of the lack of this.'' USA TODAY reported.
It is unclear whether Mr. Vann and Mr. Bauer have retained attorneys.
Details about Elijah are provided, and a reward of thousands of dollars is up for grabs.
According to a Herald Times reporter, Elijah was last seen at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, February 20, at an apartment complex in the 3900 block of Mishicot Road in Two Rivers, Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Amber Alert website says there are no known family members or associates in the area.
Anyone with information that “leads to finding Elijah” is eligible for a $40,000 reward, which will be given to Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers, the Two Rivers Police Department, the City of Two Rivers, and others. Collected by many local agencies.
“$10,000 from Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers for the arrest and prosecution of those responsible for the disappearance and $15,000 for information leading to the location and return of Elijah Bew and/or the arrest and conviction of individuals involved in his disappearance. dollars,” and an additional $15,000 thanks to funds raised through an endowment established through the City of Two Rivers,” the social media post reads.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the department by phone at 844-267-6648, the Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers P3 app, or email at trpolice@two-rivers.org.
Elijah Beau was last seen wearing gray sweatpants, a dark long-sleeved shirt, and red and green dinosaur slip-on shoes. He is 3 feet tall and weighs about 45 pounds.
Elijah has sandy hair, brown eyes and a bruise on his left knee, according to the Amber Alert website.
The alert is still active and the effort will last for a month, so daily searches will continue
Numerous federal and local law enforcement agencies, including the Two Rivers Police Department, have been searching for Elijah since the morning of February 20th, but so far have been unsuccessful.
They surveyed urban and rural neighborhoods. They searched rivers, beaches and landfills in neighboring counties. According to a Herald Times reporter, the K-9 team “checked and rechecked various areas.”
The department said Friday that it “continued to follow up on numerous tips and leads and examine extensive amounts of video footage.”
Volunteers from across the county and state also search regularly for Elijah, with another search scheduled for Tuesday morning.
The Wisconsin Amber Alert, issued hours after Elijah first went missing, remains active. He remains listed as a missing person at the Wisconsin Department of Justice's Missing, Exploited Children and Adults Clearinghouse, a Herald Times reporter reported.
Family, friends and members of the community gathered at a vigil for Elijah over the weekend, hoping he would be found soon.
They lit candles, blew bubbles and spoke of the community's determination to find Elijah, according to a Herald Times reporter.
“There's power in numbers,” Two Rivers City Council President Adam Wachowski said at the wake. “We live in a great community that cares so much about each other. When someone is in need, just You can't just ask someone to help you. Instead, you can tap into the whole community. That's Two Rivers, that's who we are, that's what we represent, that's what I am. It is our love for each other.”
Ilya's mother and boyfriend scheduled to return to court
According to a criminal complaint obtained by a reporter for the Herald Times, Baul told officers that he sent Elijah to Vann's home in Two Rivers, more than 100 miles from Wisconsin Dells, and “asked him how to be a man.” He said the purpose was to help them learn “what should be.”
Elijah stayed with Van for a week, and his mother dropped him off on February 12th. Elijah was scheduled to return to Baugh's home in Wisconsin Dells by February 23, USA TODAY reported.
According to the complaint, the toddler was ordered by Vann to stand next to his bed and pray in the hours before his disappearance.
Vann told police he didn't realize Elijah was missing until three hours later and called 911 as soon as he realized she was gone, USA TODAY reported. Ms. Vann remembered seeing Elijah the morning of her disappearance, and she told police that she saw Elijah sleeping on the couch in her living room.
Van then woke up Elijah and fed him cereal, but did not change his diaper. It happened just before Van had Elijah pray by his bed.
Vann also told police that as punishment, he would make Elijah stand for two to three hours without sitting and threaten him with cold water. Vann told the officer he was “correcting[Ilya's]bad behavior,” USA TODAY reported.
Bauer and Vann are scheduled to appear in Manitowoc County Circuit Court in the coming days, with Bauer scheduled to appear for his arraignment and Vann scheduled to attend a preliminary hearing, a Herald Times reporter said.
According to a Herald Times reporter, Vann was charged with one count of felony child neglect, Elijah's mother was charged with felony chronic child neglect, two counts of felony child neglect related to another child, and police officers were charged with one count of felony child neglect. He was charged with two misdemeanor counts of obstruction.
Contributed by Alisa M. Schafer; Manitowoc Herald Times reporter and Jonathan Limehouse.america today