POLICE FIND BODY OF MISSING CHILD ALONG THE INTERSTATE; MOTHER ACCUSED OF MURDER

A recent investigation in the case of a missing child in Clark County, Nevada, has ended with the discovery of the victim's body. The Clark County Sheriff organized an extensive search for Ariel Winter, a 4-year-old boy after a relative reported him as missing. On 28th March, all their hopes were dashed when they found his body along Interstate 5 in Pierce County, Washington, as per People, following a search operation that involved more than 100 officers, agents, and investigators, who were also joined by the FBI. Ariel's mother, Janet Garcia had already been arrested by the Everett Police Department (EPD) prior to the discovery and has now been charged with murder in the first degree, murder in the second degree, and assault of a child in the first degree.

As soon as Ariel's disappearance was reported, authorities swung into action and took Janet in for questioning, as per a statement by Everett police. KOIN 6 in its report shared that during questioning they found blood on Janet's shoes and shirt, but the mother claimed that it was from the time when her son fell and she took him to the hospital. After further interrogation, she was taken into custody for making "false and misleading statements." The same day her vehicle was also impounded by the authorities, before a search effort was launched to look for Ariel.

An Endangered Missing Persons Advisory, a more locally-focused alert was issued by the Washington State Patrol, and local media was roped in to broadcast requests about any information on the boy. The body was eventually found along I-5 in Pierce County, and authorities were able to identify the child as Ariel. The family has been notified and at present the body is with Snohomish County Medical Examiner, who is trying to determine the cause and manner of death. Janet was immediately charged and sent to the Snohomish County Jail.

In response to the discovery, Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin said, “I am completely heartbroken for the family and friends of Ariel Garcia and they will remain in my thoughts as they grieve this unbelievably tragic loss.” He further added that, “I want to commend our Everett Police Department leadership, the many hard-working men and women that make up our team, and our law enforcement partners throughout the region for all your work investigating this case. I also want to thank our media partners and the public for their help disseminating information and sharing tips – it really does make a difference.” 

The Police Chief John DeRousse shared in his statement how this wasn't the outcome they had hoped for, and expressed his condolences for the boy's family. He extended his gratitude towards the collaborators in this search and promised to provide justice to the boy. “I want to thank all our partners that jumped into action to support this search effort,” he stated. “Our investigation will continue and we will do everything we can to ensure there is justice for this young boy.”