Police in Oklahoma have found the bodies of a young girl and a young boy in waterways near Tulsa, where two toddlers have been missing since Friday.
Tulsa Police said the body of young girl found in the Verdigris Navigational Channel in Wagoner County Tuesday night has been taken to the medical examiner’s office for identification. And on Wednesday, Fox 23 reported that the body of a male child was found in Bird Creek near where Mingo Creek flows into it.
Mingo Creek runs north by the apartment complex where Donisha Willis, the mother of Miracle Crook, 2, and her brother Tony Crook, 1, lives. Bird Creek flows into the Verdigris River. The girl’s body was found “probably close to 100 miles” away from the apartment complex by water, and the boy’s body was about 15 miles away, police said.
Police said the body found on Wednesday was wearing clothing similar that worn by one of the children. The body was a “young, young” male. Police were unwilling to speculate that the two bodies are the missing children until they have positive identification, but said they had spoken to the family about the latest discoveries.
Police sent dive teams into ponds behind the apartment complex earlier in the week, but there was no sign of the missing children until an off duty deputy was fishing with his family on the Verdigris River near Porter and saw the body, Fox 23 reported. With the body found so far outside Tulsa, police said that the search for the toddlers was “dramatically widened.”
On Tuesday, Tulsa police said they had located new footage of the two children, holding hands and playing alone near an embankment on the west side of the Shoreline apartment complex, where Mingo Creek runs. They said they believe the children may have found a gap in the fence, which leads to steps into the creek.
5-27-2020Missing Children live update – second body recovery.
Posted by Tulsa Police Department on Wednesday, May 27, 2020
After family members reported not seeing the children since Thursday, Tulsa police launched a search for the toddlers. The investigation found video footage showing the children with their mother at a convenience store on Friday morning, and more footage showing the two walking down the street alone in the apartment complex about two hours later.
Police arrested Willis on Sunday, charging her with child endangerment and assaulting an officer. She has been uncooperative throughout the investigation, Tulsa police said.
According to Tulsa Police Chief Wendell Franklin, officers found Willis passed out on her couch, with her front door open. When they questioned her about the children’s whereabouts, she became abusive toward the officers and said she “didn’t care,” KJRH reported.
Sheriff's Office and Emergency Management assisting Tulsa Police with river search
The Wagoner County Sheriff’s Office and Wagoner County Emergency Management is currently on the Verdigris Navigation Channel searching the river for any individuals that may be in the river. Both agencies are assisting the Tulsa Police Department. When additional information is available it will be released.
Posted by Wagoner County Sheriff's Office on Wednesday, May 27, 2020
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[Feature Photo: Tony and Miracle Crook/Police Handout]
