Police have discovered remains they believe belong to a five-year-old boy who had been missing for a month, a week after the child's mother and her boyfriend were arrested in connection with the disappearance in New York City.
Remains believed to be those of Elijah Lewis were found by a cadaver dog in Ames Nowell State Park in Abington, Massachusetts, on Saturday morning, after a search in the park began on Friday, police said.
New Hampshire State Police said that investigators were contacted with 'credible' information that led them to search in the area. They said that although the body has not been officially identified, it is consistent with the the 5-year-old's description.
Massachusetts State Police also assisted in the search.
The search for 5-year-old Elijah Lewis led investigators to Ames Nowell State Park in Abington, where they found remains believed to be those of the boy
Elijah, who had not been for six months, was reported missing by Child Protective Services
New Hampshire State Police said that investigators were contacted with 'credible' information that led them to search in the area.
Authorities are seen at the scene where the body was discovered
Police said that although the body has not been officially identified, it is consistent with that of the 5-year-old.
'This morning state police, cadaver dogs, and emergency response team members located what is presumed to be Elijah Lewis' body buried in the ground. I'm not going to get into the specifics of the crime scene or the manner in which this boy's body was found at this time,' said Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz
State and local police had started to search the state park since Friday
'This morning state police, cadaver dogs, and emergency response team members located what is presumed to be Elijah Lewis' body buried in the ground. I'm not going to get into the specifics of the crime scene or the manner in which this boy's body was found at this time,' Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz said.
Elijah's mother, Danielle Dauphinais, 35, and her boyfriend Joseph Stapf, 30, were arrested in New York City on October 16 after the Department of Children, Youth and Families in Merrimack, where the couple lived, alerted police that Elijah had not been seen in months.
It was later reported that Elijah had been missing for a month. Neither Dauphinais nor Stapf had reported the child missing and told others to lie about their whereabouts, prosecutors said.
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Remains believed to be those of Elijah Lewis were found by a cadaver dog in Ames Nowell State Park in Abington on Saturday morning
Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz, during an October 20 press conference in Abington
Danielle Denise Dauphinais, 35, and her boyfriend Joseph Stapf, 30, were arrested near Westchester and Bruckner Aves. at approximately 7.15 am on October 16
After being arrested in New York City, Dauphinais and her boyfriend were charged with child endangerment and witness tampering in a Bronx courtroom, before the pair were extradited to their home state.
The couple was escorted by New Hampshire authorities back to the state to face charges in Hillsborough County Superior Court later this week.
Police in Merrimack had been