7 Year Old Willow Long Missing Since 9/8/13 in Watson, IL

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O/t...we just had a mother here in Rockford murder her 8 yr old son. Stabbed him to death .
Horribly sad.

His name was Thomas Kossow... 8 yrs old...if anyone wants to read about it. I am gutted right now.

[Tamikosmom]

http://www.ksdk.com/news/article/397080/3/Body-of-child-found-man-arrested

[Tamikosmom]

O/t...we just had a mother here in Rockford murder her 8 yr old son. Stabbed him to death .
Horribly sad.

His name was Thomas Kossow... 8 yrs old...if anyone wants to read about it. I am gutted right now.

Me too.

 

[cookie]

http://www.ksdk.com/news/article/397080/3/Body-of-child-found-man-arrested

Back to Willow now. This is her thread.
Such a pretty girl with a pretty name. RIP Willow. I am sorry this happened to u.
Justice for Willow!

[cookie]

O/t...we just had a mother here in Rockford murder her 8 yr old son. Stabbed him to death .
Horribly sad.

His name was Thomas Kossow... 8 yrs old...if anyone wants to read about it. I am gutted right now.

Me too.

 

Xoxo Janet...we usually always connect....

[Tamikosmom]

 

The plot thickens.  It appears that the story afforded by Willow's mother may have been fabricated.

Janet

++++++


Justin DeRyke, uncle of Willow Long, arrested for her death
09:48pm, September 10, 2013

EFFINGHAM, IL (KTVI) -The seven year old girl reported to have wandered away from her home Sunday has been found dead, and her uncle is charged with murder.  Willow Long’s body was found near a river bed about two miles from her home.  The girl’s grandfather, Dale DeRyke, is also the father of the alleged killer, and he describes the act as one of panic after an accident.

Dale DeRyke says Justin was babysitting the little girl on Saturday night.  He says the two were playing, chasing one another around the house, when Willow ran outside.  He says there is a pile of sticks he keeps in the back and the girl fell into them.

“A stick went through her and through her head,” he said Tuesday night.  “She was laying there twitching and dying.  My son is 22 years old.  He’s not….he’s never had experiences like this.  He was scared.  He hid her body.”
Now he says his son has “nothingbut remorse,” and will have to pay for what he’s done.

There are still unanswered questions surrounding his story.  Police say the mother told them she saw Willow Sunday morning watching television.  That clearly isn’t possible if the child was already dead.

Authorities would not comment on DeRyke’s statement or any other information outside of a written statement issued by the Effingham County State’s Attorney’s office.

“All indications are that the death is a homicide,” the short release from Bryan Kibler reported.  “The Effingham County State’s Attorney’s office will file First Degree Murder charges against the defendant on Wednesday afternoon in Effingham County Circuit Court, pending the possibility of additional charges to be filed later.”

A news conference is expected after DeRyke appears before a judge Wednesday at 1pm in Effingham.

<snipped>

http://fox2now.com/2013/09/10/suspect-being-held-for-suspicion-of-murder/

[Tamikosmom]

EVIL PERSONIFIED!!

Uncle faces first-degree murder charges in death
09/10/2013 22:12 PM

LATEST: 8:06 pm, 9/10/13, Tuesday

WATSON -- A 7-year-old Effingham County girl is dead, and her family members say it was at the hands of her own uncle. Willow Long disappeared on Sunday, and after days of searching, her body was found near Watson Monday night.

Justin's father and Willow's grandfather Dale Deryke says Willow tripped and fell into a pile of sticks in her yard. He says a stick was lodged in Willow's head. His son Justin was scared, wasn't thinking, and put her out of her misery by killing her.

Deryke wouldn't say how his son did it, but that Justin plans to plead guilty to first-degree murder. Illinois State Police arrested him Tuesday morning.

Deryke says he stands by his son and believes his story. "My granddaughters dead. I love my granddaughter more than I love me. I wish it was me. I wish it was me instead of my boy. There's nothing I can do about it. I can pray and hope that I can keep going through life and maybe something good will come."

Deryke is expected to be in court Wednesday in Effingham at 1 p.m. Police say they will release more information, and we should know more from the autopsy that was performed on Tuesday.

<snipped>

http://www.illinoishomepage.net/story/uncle-faces-first-degree-murder-charges-in-death/d/story/2g-izRVgqkOTslOxmBWMJw

[Tamikosmom]

EFFINGHAM COUNTY STATES ATTORNEY RELEASE ON ARREST IN WILLOW LONG CASE

Effingham County State’s Attorney Bryan M. Kibler has released the following information this afternoon on the arrest of Justin D. DeRyke in the murder of 7-year old Willow Long of Watson.
 
“On Tuesday, September 10, 2013 at approximately 5:55a.m., agents of Illinois State Police Zone 7 Investigations placed Justin D DeRyke, 22, of Watson, Illinois, under arrest for the murder of Willow Long, 7, of Watson. Mr. DeRyke is the maternal uncle of the deceased child.
 
An autopsy being conducted at this hour by Dr. John A Heidingsfelder, forensic pathologist has confirmed the identity of the body of a child found Monday evening by volunteer searchers south of Watson to be that of Willow Long. All indications are that the death is a homicide. The autopsy is ongoing and is being facilitated at St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital in Effingham.
 
The Effingham County Sheriff’s Department and the Illinois State Police continue to investigate the matter.
 
The Effingham County State’s Attorney’s Office will file First Degree Murder charges against the defendant on Wednesday afternoon in Effingham County Circuit Court, pending the possibility of additional charges to be filed later.
 
The defendant’s initial court appearance will take place on Wednesday, September 11, 2013, at 1:00p.m., on the second floor of the Effingham County Government Center, 120 W. Jefferson Ave. in Effingham, IL.”

http://www.vandaliaradio.com/Effingham-County-States-Attorney-Release-on-Arrest/17262097

[Nut44x4]

Damn 

[cookie]

Dear God

[yuknomenot]

Why hasn't the egg donor been arrested?  In Red's initial post http://scaredmonkeys.net/index.php?topic=14686.msg1575709#msg1575709 it was reported that:

7 year old Willow Long has been missing since Sunday morning, September 8, 2013 in Watson, Illinois. Willow walked away from her home on Circle Drive in Watson Sunday morning after an argument with her mother,   .

Clearly Ciara knew exactly what happened and was covering even then.  Now wondering how much grandpa knows.  So sickening 

[Tamikosmom]

Why hasn't the egg donor been arrested?  In Red's initial post http://scaredmonkeys.net/index.php?topic=14686.msg1575709#msg1575709 it was reported that:

7 year old Willow Long has been missing since Sunday morning, September 8, 2013 in Watson, Illinois. Willow walked away from her home on Circle Drive in Watson Sunday morning after an argument with her mother,   .

Clearly Ciara knew exactly what happened and was covering even then.  Now wondering how much grandpa knows.  So sickening 

Hi yuknomenot

You could be right but ...

Could it be that Ciara slept in until around 10:00 AM and the story regarding feeding her children breakfast earlier was a lie to distract from being perceived as being a negligent mother?  Could it be that Ciara ASSUMED that Willow had been watching a move with Nathaniel on Sunday morning and ASSUMED she walked out of the house?   In other words ... Ciara never imagined that her daughter had been killed the previous evening when Justin was baby-sitting.  Could this be the reason Ciara ASSUMED Willow was wearing the long T-Shirt nightgrown?

Janet

++++++

Search for missing Watson girl resumed Monday evening after temporary delay due to intense heat
Date: Tue, Sep 10, 2013

During an exclusive interview early Monday afternoon with Shelby County News, the voice of the mother of missing seven-year-old Willow Long, of Watson, was often drowned out by the sound of search planes flying overhead.

<snipped>

The community Monday afternoon literally had hundreds of searchers and law enforcement officials combing the town and rural outskirts as DeRyke, and Patty Clarey Everett, the mother of DeRyke’s boyfriend, Taylor, 22, talked with Shelby County News.

Everett explained how she first became aware of Willow’s disappearance.

“I first became aware when Ciara called Taylor and said that Willow was missing. Ciara lives here with her mom and her dad and her brother, and her two children, Willow and Nathanial.

“Her mom and dad are over-the-road truck drivers. They had left the night before (Saturday) to go out on the road and when Ciara got up Sunday morning she fed the kids cereal and pop tarts about 7ish and about 8:30 she wasn’t feeling well,” explained Everett.

“So she put in a movie for the kids to watch. They were on the couch and she went back to her bedroom and laid down and fell asleep.

“She woke up at 10:30 a.m. with Nathanial crying that Willow was gone, or saying something about ‘Willow,’ saying something ‘Willow.’ Nathaniel does not speak clearly. (Ciara) came outside and could not find Willow and she called 9-1-1 and that’s where it snowballed from there. I think the 9-1-1 call was at 10:40 a.m. or 10:41 a.m. yesterday (Sunday),” recalled Everett.

DeRyke has been “good” in dealing with her missing daughter doing the last two days, according to Everett.

DeRyke noted that Willow apparently left the house under undetermined circumstances between “10:05 a.m. and 10:15 a.m.” Sunday morning.

“I woke up at 10:15 a.m. and then we went outside and through the house and around the block a few times so it was 10:30 a.m. when we called 9-1-1.”

After initially waking, DeRyke said she asked Nathanial where Willow was.

“He just said ‘Willow’ over and over and pointed out the door. He was really upset and crying a lot. I had originally thought maybe she had taken a toy away from him or something or changed the (TV) channel.

“He is right at that age where everything sets him off, but then we couldn’t find her outside and we went to look inside because she is really bad about hiding. She loves hide and seek,” added DeRyke.

Nathanial “would not stop crying and we couldn’t find her. I called my mom as we were going around the block and I told her and she called my brother and talked to him. By the time I got up here I was dialing 9-1-1 and he came out and he was crying and he couldn’t find her in the house and I couldn’t find her so I had to stay here until someone got here so he went and drove around and he got my neighbors and they started walking and looking and while I was calling 911, my mother called the mayor’s wife.

“Her husband got people together immediately and started calling and going door to door. I had several of the neighbors here and I had pictures of Willow.”

DeRyke is extremely grateful for the response by those searching for her daughter.

“I don’t even know how to begin to say thank you to everyone. I’ve been kind of trying to figure out how to thank everybody. I expected there would be a lot of people out looking for her and helping, but there are so many people from so far away helping that aren’t even connected to the community,” said DeRyke with a trembling voice.

<snipped>

http://shelbycountynews.net/search-for-missing-watson-girl-resumed-monday-evening-after-temporary-delay-p24744-1.htm

[MuffyBee]

http://www.thexradio.com/news/78-local-news/7442-update-authorities-searching-for-missing-watson-girl
UPDATE: Body Found South of Watson Identified as Missing Willow Long, Uncle Charged in her Death
September 11, 2013

TUESDAY UPDATE: We have confirmed that Willow Long's Uncle, Justin D. DeRyke (Dee-Rike), is in custody in the Effingham County Jail, being held on a count of First Degree Murder in 7-year old Willow's death. DeRyke's initial court appearance will be at 1pm Wednesday in Effingham County Circuit Court. Effingham County State's Attorney Bryan Kibler said a press conference will follow the hearing. When asked about whether there are additional suspects in Long's death, Kibler said "no comment".

After a massive two-day search for missing 7-year old Willow Long, four volunteer searchers found the body of a small child south of Watson Monday evening at about 7:30pm Monday evening. After an autopsy Tuesday morning, it was confirmed that the body is that of Willow Long.

ISP investigators combed the scene, in an area that's located south of a small rest area on Illinois Route 37.
 

[MuffyBee]

From yesterday, Tuesday, September 10, 2013:

http://www.thexradio.com/news/78-local-news/7483-effingham-unit-40-issues-statement-on-death-of-willow-long
Effingham Unit 40 Issues Statement on Death of Willow Long
Written by Wayne Moran



Effingham Unit 40 Superintendent Mark Doan issued a statement Tuesday afternoon regarding the death of Willow Long, a student at South Side Grade School in Effingham.

The statement reads, "The entire unit #40 family is extremely saddened by the passing of South Side School student, Willow Long. We want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers for Willow.

The safety and social well-being of our students is a priority at Unit #40. We implemented our Crisis Intervention Team beginning Monday, September 9th at all elementary schools in the District. We will continue with these team members in place to support both our students and staff for the foreseeable future.

 For many of our students school provides a routine they appreciate. Therefore, the District is trying to provide a sense of normalcy, but also allowing students to share their feelings in a safe and supporting environment. The District feels that the understanding of the issues and the grief process is best addressed in the home by parents."
More...

The statement also included a packet for parents, to help at home during the grieving process. You can download that packet in PDF (Clickable link at end of article)

[Tamikosmom]

http://www.thexradio.com/news/78-local-news/7442-update-authorities-searching-for-missing-watson-girl
UPDATE: Body Found South of Watson Identified as Missing Willow Long, Uncle Charged in her Death
September 11, 2013

TUESDAY UPDATE: We have confirmed that Willow Long's Uncle, Justin D. DeRyke (Dee-Rike), is in custody in the Effingham County Jail, being held on a count of First Degree Murder in 7-year old Willow's death. DeRyke's initial court appearance will be at 1pm Wednesday in Effingham County Circuit Court. Effingham County State's Attorney Bryan Kibler said a press conference will follow the hearing. When asked about whether there are additional suspects in Long's death, Kibler said "no comment".

After a massive two-day search for missing 7-year old Willow Long, four volunteer searchers found the body of a small child south of Watson Monday evening at about 7:30pm Monday evening. After an autopsy Tuesday morning, it was confirmed that the body is that of Willow Long.

ISP investigators combed the scene, in an area that's located south of a small rest area on Illinois Route 37.
 

Press conference?  Muffy ... do you have a live feed link?

Thanks

Janet

[grace-land]

September 11, 2013--Tweets

https://twitter.com/979Xfm

 979 Xfm ‏@979Xfm  23m 
LISTEN LIVE to the Willow Long press conference: http://rdo.to/WXEF


Probable cause:  knife used

[grace-land]

  

http://www.kmov.com/news/crime/More-details-released-in-death-7-year-old-girl-Uncle-officially-charged-with-murder-223336701.html

More details released in death of 7-year-old girl; Uncle officially charged with murder
Posted on September 11, 2013 at 1:58 PM
Updated today at 2:14 PM

(KMOV) –  A 22-year-old man on Wednesday was officially charged with killing his 7-year-old niece as more details got released on what happened in the moments leading up to and after her death.

Justin DeRyke was charged at the Effingham County Courthouse with first-degree murder in the death of Willow Long. His bond was set at $5 million.

According to court documents, DeRyke and Long were in the backyard of a family member's home in Watson when she fell on a stick that went into her throat.

Prosecutors said DeRyke then slit her throat before stabbing her in the heart and throat. Police said DeRyke put the girl’s body in a plastic bag and dumped it in the Little Wabash River. That’s where her body was found by four volunteers around 7:30 p.m. Monday. DeRyke was arrested about 6 a.m. Tuesday.

According to court documents, DeRyke was home alone watching Long and other children when the alleged incident occurred. Police said Long’s mother was at a local bar and her grandparents were working as truck drivers at the time.
 

[grace-land]

http://www.wandtv.com/story/23405679/press-conference-sheding-light-on-the-death-of-willow-long

Press conference shedding light on the death of Willow Long
Posted: Sep 11, 2013 2:22 PM CDT

Watson - A press conference for the death of Willow Long took place Wednesday. Here is what we know now.

DeRyke told police he stabbed Willow multiple times, wrapped her body in plastic and dumped her body. DeRyke has been charged with three counts of first degree murder.

The States attorney said in a press conference that this is one of  the most heartbreaking events in Effingham County's history.

The case remains open. However, no other person of interest is being sought. The state's attorney reassures that the community is safe. 
 

[grace-land]

http://www.wics.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_13085.shtml

Wednesday, September 11 2013, 01:56 PM CDT
More Charges in Willow Long Death

The man accused in the death of 7-year-old Willow Long made his first appearance in Effingham County court today.

Justin DeRyke is charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

According to a series of interviews collected by police, DeRyke was babysitting Willow Saturday night, while her mother was at a bar and grill.

A probable cause statement introduced in court indicates Willow approached her uncle at 11 p.m. to watch TV. She tugged on his arm and scratched him. He yelled, and she ran outside. She tripped and fell on a brush pile, and was impaled by a stick. DeRyke reportedly saw her twitching on the ground, and, he told police, wanted to "end her suffering." He then retrieved a knife from the house and stabbed Willow several times.

Authorities say stab wounds were the cause of Willow's death
 

[grace-land]

http://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/Southern-Illinois-man-charged-with-killing-niece-4804328.php

Southern Illinois man charged with killing niece 
Updated 12:31 pm, Wednesday, September 11, 2013

EFFINGHAM, Ill. (AP) — A southern Illinois man is jailed on $5 million bond after being accused of stabbing his 7-year-old niece to death.

Effingham County prosecutors charged 22-year-old Justin DeRyke on Wednesday with three counts of first-degree murder. The criminal complaint alleges DeRyke stabbed Willow Long in the chest with a knife Sunday.
 
Authorities have said Willow's mother was feeling ill and went back to bed Sunday morning, only to wake up a short time later and find her daughter missing.

A judge has given time for DeRyke to hire an attorney. DeRyke doesn't have a listed home telephone number.