On Monday, Ohio police arrested a couple for the death of the woman’s 7-year-0ld son — who allegedly died weeks before he was reported missing.
The body of Hershall Creachbaum was discovered half a mile from his Dayton residence on Saturday, mere hours after he was announced missing. Michael Kendrick, 38, the boyfriend of Hershall’s mother, initially claimed he was attacked and the boy was abducted. However, investigations concluded that was not true, as the child had passed away weeks earlier, as reported by the Dayton Daily News.
READ: Autistic 7-Year-Old Boy Found Dead After Vanishing With Wheelchair; Person of Interest in Custody
Kendrick was reportedly intoxicated when he placed the false kidnapping call.
Creachbaum, who was autistic and nonverbal, used a wheelchair but could walk short distances. His cause of death is undetermined.
Ashley Johnson, Creachbaum’s mother, 36, reportedly informed authorities that her son died sometime in May during her hospitalization. Kendrick confessed to Johnson that the child died naturally while under his supervision, prompting him to dispose of the body by railway tracks, according to WHIO.
Reports allege Kendrick admitted to hitting Creachbaum twice on the head and shoving him, which led to further harm. Kendrick claimed the boy passed away in the shower the next day, WHIO reports.
“He then took him out, stuffed him into a suitcase and disposed of his body in a grassy field near train tracks. He then after a few weeks went back and recovered the bones. He placed them in a bag and put them in the 100 block of McClure St.,” Dayton police wrote in an affidavit.
Though Kendrick was booked into jail on a preliminary murder charge, he was formally charged with tampering with evidence and gross abuse of a corpse. Johnson was arrested on preliminary charges of failing to report a death and obstructing justice.
Dayton police Chief Kamran Afzal said additional charges are possibly forthcoming as their investigation continues.
[Feature Photo: Dayton police]
