While hundreds of people – including FBI agents and volunteers throughout the Quad Cities – searched for a missing 4-year-old girl, she was safely in her home.
Now law enforcement officials have a new and, in many ways, a more difficult mystery to solve.
At a news conference Thursday, Rock Island Police Chief Tim McCloud said that 4-year-old Blessing Aoci, who was reported to be missing in an SUV that was stolen on Jan. 16, was never in any danger.
McCloud said police believe Blessing exited the vehicle fairly quickly.
He said family claimed she was a different daughter when she was seen during a search of the house.
Family “perpetuated the lie several times” during the search, police said. Only after officers left the house was Blessing sent back out into the alley to be found.
Body cams support the findings.
“We have tried to understand why she would invent this story, but when confronted with all the information, the family stopped cooperating with the investigation,” McCloud said.
McCloud said felony charges have now been filed against Aoci’s mother for filing a false report. The last contact police had with the mother was “two or three days ago.”
Kidnapping charges for a 16-year old boy will be dropped.
Police asked if you know the mother’s location, please contact Crime Stoppers at (309) 762-9500. All tips are anonymous.
Arrests of a man and four juveniles
The sole adult suspect in the incident appeared Tuesday morning in Rock Island County Court. Jaron Bailey-Harris, 18, faces charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and possession of a stolen vehicle, court records show.
Bailey-Harris, who has pleaded not guilty, waived his preliminary hearing. Now the case is scheduled for pretrial conferences on Feb. 27 in Rock Island County Court.
He is being held without bond in Rock Island County Jail.
A stolen car and a report of a missing child
Bailey-Harris and four juveniles were arrested in connection with the disappearance of a 4-year-old girl who later was found safe, according to a news release from Rock Island Police.
Shortly after 6 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, a brown Saturn Outlook was stolen from the 1300 block of 14½ Street, reportedly with 4-year old Blessing Aoci still in the back seat, police say. Officers responded to the area within minutes and started a search.
About 14 minutes later, the stolen SUV was found unoccupied in the area of 8th Street and 15th Avenue. Immediately, information and a picture were posted about the missing child on the Rock Island Police Department’s Facebook page, which was shared just under 43,000 times, the release says.
Illinois State Police were contacted to issue an Amber Alert, which was later sent to cell phones by the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
A command post was established in the area of 15th Street and 15th Avenue using the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS) Unified Command Post Vehicle. Officers canvassed the area for Blessing while the Rock Island and Moline police and the Rock Island County Sheriff’s Office flew drones to try to find her.
Later, search efforts focused on the blocks surrounding the area from which the car was stolen. They included voluntary searches of residences and property.
Assisting in the search were the Rock Island County Sheriff’s Department; Moline, Milan, Davenport and Illinois State police; the FBI; the U. S. Marshals Service; neighbors and volunteers. For almost nine hours, teams of law enforcement and volunteers combed the neighborhood with no sign of Blessing.
Eventually Blessing, who was found in apparent good health, was transported by the Rock Island Fire Department to Unity Point Trinity for evaluation.
“Everybody is just immensely relieved,” McCloud said earlier. “You know, it was exhausting, it was emotionally exhausting — the entire process. And I can say that I hope we never go through anything like this ever again.”
In addition to Bailey-Harris, four juveniles also were arrested.
- A 16-year old boy faces charges of kidnapping and possession of a stolen vehicle
- A 16-year-old boy faces a charge of possession of a stolen vehicle
- A 15-year-old girl faces a charge of possession of a stolen vehicle
- A 14-year-old girl faces a charge of possession of a stolen vehicle.
Again, the kidnapping charges will be dropped due to recent developments.
“We were in direct communication with the state’s attorney’s office and Dora Villareal while this was going on. So she played an active role in this as we are presenting evidence and determining charges — and they may be amended later. But this is what we have so far,” McCloud said earlier. “And I would say that some of the tips that were brought in — some of our leads that were generated from when we went to track down some of the other stolen vehicles — that just led us to more and more people that were involved and other charges that came as a result.”