BABY GRACE - Riley Ann Sawyer

[klaasend]

http://www.click2houston.com/news/14459849/detail.html

Click2Houston.com
 
Fisherman Finds Girl's Remains In Box

POSTED: 12:37 pm CDT October 30, 2007
UPDATED: 5:39 pm CDT October 30, 2007


GALVESTON, Texas -- A fisherman found the remains of a little girl in a container on an island in West Galveston Bay, officials told KPRC Local 2 Tuesday.

Galveston County sheriff's deputies said the fisherman reported his find late Monday.

The island is in a remote area several miles west-southwest of the Galveston Causeway, officials said. It is only accessible by boat.

Investigators said decomposing remains of a girl who died from skull fractures were in the box.

"He discovered a container. He checked the container and found what he believed to be a body," said Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo, with the Galveston County Sheriff's Department.

Officials said preliminary autopsy results revealed the body is that of a 2-5-year-old white female, 32 inches to 34 inches tall, weighing between 25 and 30 pounds.

She was wearing a pink 3/4-sleeve pullover top and a pink broom skirt. Both were the Cherokee brand sized 2T.

The girl also wore size 8.5 white and purple tennis shoes with small lights in the heels.

There is no word yet on when the girl died.

Investigators said they want whoever is responsible for the girl's death caught.

"This is important -- not only for the child but the child's family and we need to hear about what happened, when it happened, where it happened, and how we could bring some resolution to this," Tuttoilmondo said.

Detectives did not release details about the container because they felt it held clues to the case.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Galveston County Sheriff's Office at 409-766-2222 or 866-248-8477.

[pdh3]

Heartbreaking. Poor little baby.

I hope they find the scumbag who did this to her. If she had a fractured skull, then more than likely it was abuse by a parent or someone closely connected to her family who killed her, and they have never reported the child missing. Could she be the child of illegals, and no one really knew she even existed?
How can a child disappear and no one notice, if the family is stable and a part of the community? I don't think that can happen.

[klaasend]

Police: Toddler Girl Found in Box in Texas Could Be From Anywhere
Sunday , November 04, 2007
 HOUSTON —

Police in Texas say the body of a young girl washed ashore in a storage box in Galveston Bay last week could have come from as far away as Europe, but officially ruled out it being British toddler Madeleine McCann, who went missing in Portugal six months ago.

"We're confident it's not her," Galveston County Sheriff's Department spokesman Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo told FOX News.

After receiving several tips suggesting that the body may have belonged to McCann, Galveston authorities worked with Interpol, the FBI and Portuguese authorities to eliminate that possibility.

The Gulf Intercoastal Waterway, where the box containing the body was found, is a major commercial port, and Galveston a popular tourist destination with a transient population, Tuttoilmondo said.

"The important thing to consider in this case is that Galveston is a tourist area," Tuttoilmondo said. "We have a lot of commerce going through here," he said.

The Galveston County Sheriff's Department has launched a massive public appeal for help identifying the child, nicknamed "Baby Grace" by police. They have released a sketch of what they believe the child would look like and are offering a cash reward.

According to a forensic dental examination of the remains, she was between 2-3 years-old. She was white, 32 to 35 inches tall and weighing 25 to 30 pounds. She had long blonde or light brown wavy hair, and was wearing a Target-brand pink, flowing skirt, a pink or red shirt and white light-up tennis shoes with purple flowers on them.

Hundreds of tips and leads have poured in from all over the country, Tuttoilmondo said, but so far none of them have helped solve the mystery. Police are also sifting through missing child reports in hopes of finding a match.

"We're still going through known missing person cases. It's a long process," Tuttoilmondo said. "Can I say absolutely she is not a known missing person? No," he said.

"We are getting tips literally from all over the country," he said. "We're going through every single one. This tells me that people are concerned."

Galveston County Crime Stoppers has set up a memorial fund to pay for the little girl's funeral and an account to offer rewards for anyone who helps investigators lead them to the killer. Donations can be made to Galveston County Crime Stoppers.

A fisherman found the girl late Monday night. Her body was inside a blue plastic utility box that washed ashore along the Intercoastal Waterway.

The Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the child had been dead for at least two weeks and sustained a skull fracture. The cause of death has not been determined but authorities are treating the case as a homicide.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Galveston County sheriff's Office at 409-766-2222, the agency's tip line at 866-248-8477 or any Crime Stoppers organization.

A prayer vigil will be held for the girl Sunday afternoon in Galveston.

[MumInOhio]

Police Flooded With "Baby Grace" Tips
FBI, Texas Authorities Follow Leads To Identify Child Remains Discovered In Galveston Bay

TIKI ISLAND, Texas, Nov. 6, 2007


(CBS/AP) Investigators on Monday said at least two dozen girls reported missing from across the country match the physical description of the child investigators have named "Baby Grace."

Investigators were pursuing 170 active leads and on Monday were conducting follow-up interviews with people who had given promising clues, Galveston County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo said, according to the Galveston County Daily News.

Hundreds of tips from around the country have poured in since authorities released sketches of the unidentified child on Friday. A fisherman found the toddler's body a week ago along the Intercoastal Waterway.

Residents held a memorial service to help focus attention on the case of "Baby Grace," the young girl whose remains were discovered inside a storage box that washed ashore on Galveston Bay.

Attendees to Sunday's memorial service gathered around a 4-foot-tall wooden cross bearing the words "In loving Memory of Baby Grace."

After speeches, prayers, songs and poems, attendees took the cross by boat to the small uninhabited island where the child's body was found.

"This is not the place to end this little girl's life," said Tuttoilmondo. "We won't quit until we figure it out."

Authorities say forensic dental examination has narrowed the girl's age to between 2 and 3 years. She is described as white, 32 to 35 inches tall and 25 to 30 pounds. She had waist-long, wavy blond or light brown hair. She was wearing a Target-brand pink, flowing skirt, a pink or red shirt and white light-up tennis shoes with purple flowers on them.

Several callers believe that the child's body may be that of Madeleine McCann, a 4-year-old British girl whose disappearance from a resort hotel in Portugal in May has made international headlines, Tuttoilmondo said.

"Based on the totality of the circumstances, we do not believe it's her (Madeleine)," Tuttoilmondo said and added that his office is working with the FBI to completely rule out the possibility.

Local authorities and the FBI are going through missing person reports from across country in an effort to identify the girl.

Galveston County Crime Stoppers set up a memorial fund to pay for her funeral as well as an account to offer a reward for anyone who helps to solve this crime.

The Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the child had been dead for at least two weeks and sustained a skull fracture. The cause of death has not been determined but authorities are treating the case as a homicide.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Galveston County sheriff's Office at 409-766-2222, the agency's tip line at 866-248-8477 or any Crime Stoppers organization.

[Nut44x4]

http://www.myfoxcleveland.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail?contentId=4994909&version=4&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=1.1.1

PHOTO COMPARISON ON LINK
Fox 8 Exclusive: Is 'Baby Grace' from NE Ohio
A story that has captured headlines in Texas, may be about a little girl from Northeast Ohio.
   
Police in Galveston, Texas are trying to identify a two-year-old little girl, known as "Baby Grace", who was found on October 29th inside a storage box that washed ashore on Galveston Bay.
   
Police now think the little girl could be from Mentor.
   
Two-year-old Riley Ann Sawyers moved to Spring, Texas with her mother, Kim, last summer.
   
Riley's grandmother, Sheryl Sawyers, says Kim moved to Texas after she met a man on the internet.
   
Kim and Riley had been living with Sawyers, who is the mother of Riley's father Robert, for the past two-years.
   
Sherly and Robert have had no contact from Kim since she moved to Texas and they have been going through the legal process in both Texas and Ohio to try and get visitation rights to see Riley.
   
In a strange twist, Riley's mother told police in Texas this week that she did not have Riley anymore. The mother claims that someone from Ohio, with papers demanding custody of the little girl took Riley. Kim Sawyers says she never looked into the validity of the person seeking custody of the child.
   
The state of Ohio says that never happened.
   
Tuesday, Robert Sawyers submitted a DNA sample to Mentor Police, to see if "Baby Grace" is in fact Riley Ann.
   
Mentor Police are sending that DNA sample to Galveston, Texas.
   
The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to the identity of "Baby Grace". 
 
 

[MumInOhio]

Oh my..thank you Nut..been keeping an eye open for updates..sure sounds like a good chance it's this little girl. Just remembered there was a similar case here in Ohio, the child was in Florida and she just disappeared. Someone had papers to take that little girl too and the gov. agency denied it was them. Will see if I can find anything on it. Maybe that's what gave this mother the idea!

[MumInOhio]

The little girl I mentioned above was Rilya Wilson. The story had a lot of news coverage from 2002 until the latest I found on CNN Oct 7th or 8th of this year.
There was a big shake up in Florida Chidren's Services because of Rilya.

[Nut44x4]

Baby Grace probe focusing on DNA;
Family of Spring girl among eight asked for samples
 
HARVEY RICE, Staff
 
GALVESTON 
 

GALVESTON - Investigators have requested DNA samples from the families of eight missing children, one of them from Spring, who fit the description of Baby Grace, a 2- to 3-year-old girl whose body was found in a plastic box on a sandbar in West Galveston Bay.

After receiving about 350 leads, investigators chose the eight cases from among 110 cases of missing children who matched the girl's description, Galveston County sheriff's spokesman Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo said Wednesday.

The eight cases are from all over the United States, he said.

Authorities requested a DNA sample from the father and mother of the Spring girl, Tuttoilmondo said. The father lives in Ohio and the mother lives in Spring, he said.

DNA results from Baby Grace are expected late this week or early next week. Tuttoilmondo did not know whether the DNA samples from the Spring girl's father had been received.

He said it takes two to three weeks to obtain DNA results once the samples arrive at the lab.

Investigators are giving no greater weight to the Spring case than to any other case, Tuttoilmondo said.

"The possibility is just as strong as any of the other 110 cases," he said. "We are doing this because we are leaving no stone unturned."

The eight cases in which DNA samples were requested were chosen "on the totality of the circumstances in comparing those missing persons to our case," he added.

Tuttoilmondo said recent reports about the Spring girl hadn't influenced the probe.

"We are letting the evidence develop, rather than push the development," he said. "Our focus is still on who is she, identifying her and filling that empty seat at somebody's Thanksgiving table."

The FBI on Tuesday offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the identification of Baby Grace, whose body was discovered Oct. 29 by a fisherman. An autopsy found three skull factures, but the cause of death has not been determined.

Baby Grace had blond hair reaching to the middle of her back, was 32-34 inches tall and weighed 25-30 pounds. She was dressed in a pink pullover top with three-quarter sleeves and a matching broom skirt.

Her white tennis shoes had Velcro closures and purple flowers with LED lights.

Information about the investigation is available on the FBI Web site at http://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seekinfo/babygrace_gavelston.htm.

Anyone with information can call the Galveston Sheriff's Department at 409-766-222 or 866-248-8477, or any FBI office or Crime Stoppers. The Houston Crime Stoppers number is 713-222-TIPS. 
 
harvey.rice@chron.com 
 
November 22, 2007
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=574&topicId=100020825&docId=l:705356087&start=14

[SarahD]

I hope they find out who this little girl is.   It's so sad what is happening to our young children. 

[Nut44x4]

Thank you Klaas for changing the name of this thread 

[MuffyBee]

I was reading on at the British newspaper  "Mirror" forum, and some of the posters seem to believe Baby Grace may be Madeleine McCann.

[pdh3]

Muffy - I believe they ruled out Madeleine early on in the case.

I hope they find out who this baby is, and what happened to her. Then I hope the authorities can go after the killer.
I have a feeling it may be little Riley.....

[MuffyBee]

Muffy - I believe they ruled out Madeleine early on in the case.

I hope they find out who this baby is, and what happened to her. Then I hope the authorities can go after the killer.
I have a feeling it may be little Riley.....

pdh3 ~  I thought had read Madeleine McCann was ruled out early on in the case too, but believe it or not, there are those that have a thread still going believing she might be Baby Grace.  Some kind of conspiracy theory.  I think they are up to like 160 pages now...  I don't believe Baby Grace is Madeleine.  I surely wish Baby Grace could be identified.  Poor little baby doll.   

[Nut44x4]

Family hopes DNA not linked to Baby Grace;
Ohio relatives of a missing child among several asked for samples
 
HARVEY RICE, Staff
 
GALVESTON 
 

GALVESTON - Sheryl Sawyers is hoping DNA testing will show her 2-year-old granddaughter is not Baby Grace, the blond girl whose body was discovered in a plastic container on a sand bar in West Galveston Bay.

Sawyers' granddaughter, Riley Ann Sawyers, is one of eight missing children matching the description of Baby Grace whose families have been asked to provide DNA samples.

Her hope is that the child's mother, Kimberly Zeigler, of Spring, is hiding her. "I'm absolutely hoping that's what it is, that they have her hidden somewhere," said Sawyers, 47, a nurse interviewed by phone Friday from her home in Mentor, Ohio.

Sawyers said her family hasn't seen or spoken to Riley since June. She said Galveston County officials have told her Zeigler told them someone claiming to be an Ohio child welfare worker took Riley from her home in Spring.

Neither Zeigler, 19, nor her husband, Royce, could be reached for comment Friday. The couple were married in June, records show.

Galveston County sheriff's spokesman Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo could not be reached for comment, but he has said investigators are giving no greater weight to the Sawyers' case than any of the other cases they have chosen to investigate more closely.

Robert Sawyers said Mentor police took swabs from inside his cheeks on Tuesday, but had to do it again on Wednesday because they didn't do it properly the first time.

Like his mother, Robert Sawyers hopes his DNA will not match Baby Grace's. "I think she might be, but I'm hoping she's not," Robert Sawyers said. "The picture I have and the picture of Baby Grace is so similar it kind of scares me."

The DNA results from Baby Grace, whose body was discovered by a fisherman Oct. 29, were expected early next week. Tuttoilmondo has said that it takes from two to three weeks to obtain DNA results.

Baby Grace was 2 to 3 years old, had blond hair reaching to the middle of her back, was 32-34 inches tall and 25-30 pounds. Authorities have said she suffered skull fractures, but have not released an official cause of death.

She was wearing a matching pink top and skirt. The top was a pullover with three-quarter-length sleeves and the bottom was a broom skirt. She wore panties with a Disney label inside and a figure that appeared to be a princess on the outside.

She wore white tennis shoes, size 8 1/2 , with Velcro closures and purple flowers with LED lights.

Information about the Baby Grace investigation is available on the FBI Web site at www.fbi.gov/wanted/seekinfo/babygrace_gavelston.htm.

Anyone with information should phone the Sheriff's Department at 409-766-222, 866-248-8477 any FBI office or any Crime Stoppers. The Houston Crime Stoppers number is 713-222-TIPS. 
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=574&topicId=100020825&docId=l:706015362&start=17

[MuffyBee]

Police Find, Charge Parents In 'Baby Grace' Case
Parents Of Mystery Girl Identified By Authorities

POSTED: 4:40 pm CST November 25, 2007
UPDATED: 5:46 pm CST November 25, 2007
http://www.click2houston.com/news/14688709/detail.html
GALVESTON, Texas -- Police said they believe they have identified Baby Grace and charged the girl's parents, investigators told KPRC Local 2 Sunday.

The Galveston County Sheriff's Department confirmed that the mother of the missing girl, Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 19, and stepfather, Royce Clyde Zeigler II, 24, have been charged in connection with her death.

They said they were charged with injury to a child and tampering with evidence.
The girl who investigators said they believe is the missing girl, Riley Ann Sawyers, was found dead in a storage box that washed ashore on Galveston Bay on Oct. 30. Her identity has not yet been confirmed by DNA.

Stay tuned to KPRC for all the details of this developing story.

[MuffyBee]

AP Texas News      

Nov. 25, 2007, 4:51PM
Couple charged in case of missing child who may be `Baby Grace'

© 2007 The Associated Press
 GALVESTON, Texas — Galveston County authorities have arrested a couple in the case of a missing child who may be "Baby Grace."

Authorities say they have tentatively identified the girl's remains found in Galveston Bay last month as those of Riley Ann Sawyers of Spring. They're waiting on DNA test results before making a positive identification on the remains found in a plastic storage bin.

The girl's mother and stepfather reportedly told family members that she was taken in July by someone claiming to be an Ohio social worker. But they never told police she was missing.

Galveston County sheriff's spokesman Ray Tuttoilmondo says Kimberly Trenor and Royce Zeigler have been charged with injury to a child and tampering with evidence.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/5327644.html

[MuffyBee]

Spring Couple Arrested in Baby Grace Case
 Last Edited: Sunday, 25 Nov 2007, 5:06 PM CST
Created: Sunday, 25 Nov 2007, 3:51 PM CST
A couple from Spring who police believe are connected to the "Baby Grace" case apparently have been arrested and are in Galveston County Jail.

Galveston police aren't saying yet but have scheduled a press conference for Monday morning at 10.

Authorities say they have tentatively identified the girl's remains found in Galveston Bay last month as those of Riley Ann Sawyers of Spring. They're waiting on DNA test results before making a positive identification on the remains found in a plastic storage bin.

The Galveston Daily News reported Sunday that jail clerks confirmed that Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 19, and Royce Clyde Zeigler II, 24, both of Spring, are charged with injury to a child and tampering with evidence.

Officers reportedly searched the home of Trenor and Zeigler in the 6800 block of Enns Lane in Spring  Friday, then arrested them. They are each being held on bonds of $350,000.

Trenor and Zeigler allegedly told family members that Riley Ann Sawyers, who resembles the girl found dead in a plastic storage bin in Galveston Bay nearly a month ago, was taken in July by someone claiming to be an Ohio social worker.

-------

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
http://tinyurl.com/yvadth

[SunnyinTX]

Muffy...thanks for the updates on this.....I know, in particular Tim, and all of TES will be glad to know she has been identified...so sad.....

[pdh3]

This makes me sick. Why didn't she just leave the baby with her Dad, and her grandmother?

[Dihannah1]

I had heard TES was going to get involved, but case may be solved. 
http://news.aol.com/story/_a/police-identify-girl-found-dead-in-box/20071125204509990001

Police Identify Girl Found Dead in Box
By ANGELA K. BROWN,AP
Posted: 2007-11-25 21:43:43
Filed Under: Nation News
DALLAS (Nov. 25) - A couple who never reported that their toddler went missing this summer have been arrested by investigators searching for the identity of a girl whose body washed ashore in a storage bin in Galveston Bay.
 
AP
Sketch of "Baby Grace"


Authorities are awaiting DNA test results but believe the girl is 2-year-old Riley Ann Sawyers of Spring, said Galveston County sheriff's Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo.

The girl's mother, Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 19, and Royce Clyde Zeigler II, 24, reportedly told relatives that she was taken in July by someone claiming to be an Ohio social worker. But they never told police she was missing, Tuttoilmondo said.

After police searched their suburban Houston home, they were arrested early Saturday and charged with injury to a child and tampering with evidence, Tuttoilmondo said. The couple remain jailed in lieu of $350,000 bail each.

It's unclear whether they are married, Tuttoilmondo said. Riley's father lives in Ohio.

Tuttoilmondo declined to say what was found or what the couple may have said about Riley's disappearance.

The two have attorneys, but Tuttoilmondo could not immediately provide their names.

Last week, authorities said the families of eight missing children from across the United States were being asked to provide DNA samples. Tuttoilmondo said they were selected from 110 cases of missing children who matched a description of the girl being called "Baby Grace." The child was described as being 2 or 3.

After hearing about the discovery of the girl in a plastic storage bin Oct. 29, Riley's paternal grandmother, Sheryl Sawyers, called Texas authorities to see whether a missing-person report had been filed in Riley's case. When she saw a sketch of Baby Grace, she thought it might be her granddaughter.

Sheryl Sawyers said she has not seen Riley since Kimberly Trenor moved with the girl to Spring this year to marry Zeigler, whom she met online, the Galveston County Daily News reported Sunday.

Sawyers said that her son and Kimberly Trenor had Riley while they were teenagers and that the three of them lived with her in Mentor, Ohio, for about two years.

The girl's grandfather, Ray Sawyers, told The Associated Press on Sunday that authorities had asked his family not to comment about the case.

Riley's father, Robert Sawyers, 20, has said he hopes his daughter is not Baby Grace.

"I think she might be, but I'm hoping she's not," Robert Sawyers told the Houston Chronicle for a story in Sunday's online edition. "The picture I have and the picture of Baby Grace is so similar - it kind of scares me."