Police made a gruesome discovery at a home in Rock Island, Illinois, in July. They say they found the body of a 10-year-old boy in a trash can. Zion Staples’ mother, 37-year-old Sushi Staples, is now in police custody waiting for her court date. In a horrifying twist, police determined Zion had likely been in the trash can for more than seven months.
According to TV 6 KWQC, the mother lied to police about the location of her son, and at one point said she didn’t have a son at all. Now, she faces charges related to Zion’s death.
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Neighbors said Staples acted suspiciously for quite some time.
A neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous, told TV 6 that Staples told her back in December that Christmas would never be the same. She also said the mother made strange remarks about the boy when he was missing.
The neighbor told the outlet she contacted the Department of Children and Family Services multiple times, but it wasn’t until her call on July 25 that police performed a welfare check. That is when they discovered the body in the garage of the home in Rock Island.
Other neighbors said things looked OK from the outside.
Andre and Danielle Builta told TV 6 they moved in recently, and the Staples’ home seemed happy. They said they saw two girls playing outside and drawing with sidewalk chalk. Nothing seemed outwardly suspicious.
“Playing with scooters out in front of the garage, everything seemed really normal,” Andre told the outlet.
But it seems outward appearances didn’t match what was happening inside the home.
An anonymous neighbor told TV 6 she wanted to know why it took so long for anyone to find Zion. She recalled having a dead animal in a trash can at her home and didn’t understand how no one noticed the smell.
“I had a dead raccoon in my backyard, and we put it in a garbage can, I mean, in a garbage bag and then put it in a garbage can. And I couldn’t even stand the smell waiting for garbage day,” the neighbor recalled. “So I can’t imagine, that with the wind directions, that nobody would smell that.”
The coroner determined the death was suspicious.
Rock Island County Coroner Brian Gustafson told Local 4 News that Zion’s death was “considered suspicious and not natural.” He added he would not disclose any more information at this time “due to the ‘extreme initiation of this investigation.’”
Staples was charged with multiple crimes.
Per People, police arrested Staples and charged her with concealment of a death, failure to report the death of a child under 13, and obstruction of justice. She made her first appearance in court on July 28. She is held in the Rock Island County Jail on a $500,000 bond. Her preliminary hearing is set for August 15.
If you suspect child abuse, you can call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453 (1-800-4-A-Child), or go to Childhelp.org. The hotline is available 24/7.
