Police in Ohio believe they have recovered the body of a young boy who was the subject of an Amber Alert earlier this week. Darnell Taylor, 5, was reported missing on February 14 along with his foster mother, 48-year-old Pammy Maye. A concerning call to the police from Maye's husband prompted the search for the child. Sadly, it appears the story had a fatal ending.
Taylor's biological grandparents spoke to WBNS and said they were shocked to hear that Maye was suspected of hurting Darnell. The adults had been friends for years, and they fully trusted her to care for him. Now, Maye faces murder charges.
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Darnell and Maye reportedly disappeared in the middle of the night.
The foster mother and young child took off from their Columbus-area home around 3 a.m. Wednesday in a 2015 Jeep Cherokee, per a story from WLS-TV.
Police held a media conference later that day, and Columbus Police Deputy Chief Smith Weir said Maye's husband claimed she "woke him up and made statements that made him believe that their foster child, 5-year-old Darnell Taylor, had been hurt or was in danger."
Police searched the home.
Weir explained that police officers went to Maye's home, but there was no sign of the woman or the child. They enacted a statewide Amber Alert around 5 a.m. and interviewed family and friends, hoping for any information leading to the pair.
Police recovered the missing vehicle in Brooklyn, Ohio, about three hours away from home, but neither Maye nor Darnell was inside, per HuffPost.
Darnell's biological grandparents begged Maye to return the little boy.
Anthony and Tawanda Baynes told WBNS that they were unable to care for Darnell and entrusted Maye as a close family friend to raise him. Although the families had always spent time together, Maye had recently distanced herself.
"We've been out there to their home, knocking on the front door, the side door, no answer," Tawanda Baynes explained to the news outlet about recent attempts to contact Maye.
"We thought maybe she was keeping him from us so he can be a part of their family first, but six months … that's a long time," Anthony Baynes added.
The family reportedly kept photos of Darnell through their home and clearly loved the child very much.
"He has a bubbly personality, always smiling, always dancing," his biological aunt, Quanisha King, told WBNS.
Sadly, it appears they won't see Darnell again.
Columbus Division of Police Chief Elaine R. Bryant addressed the media Friday morning and announced that police believe they have found Darnell's body. Bryant explained that police received a call Thursday night about a suspicious woman walking around a commercial building.
Officers reported to the scene, where they arrested Maye, who allegedly told them where they could find Darnell's body. They found a body they believed to be Darnell's in a sewage drain in Franklin County.
"This is a tragic development, and we certainly hoped for a different outcome," Bryant said during the news conference.
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Maye now faces murder charges.
Police previously announced charges of kidnapping and child endangerment, but now Maye's charges have been upgraded to murder.
"This is now a homicide investigation," Bryant said in the news conference. "This isn't the outcome that we wanted. But we're going to make sure we do everything we can to bring justice for Darnell."
Maye could face life in prison if she's convicted.
