Nearly a month after her daughter went missing, the mother of 10-year-old Breasia Terrell has responded to lingering questions about her family’s cooperation with the police investigation into Breasia’s disappearance.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Breasia was last seen in Davenport, Iowa, after she had gone to spend the night after the home of her stepbrother’s father, Henry Dinkins. Later that same day, Dinkins was taken into custody on a sex offender registry violation. In 1990, Dinkins was convicted of sexually abusing a victim 13 years or under.
Police have since confirmed that Dinkins in a person of interest in Breasia’s case, but he has not been charged in connection to her disappearance.
Authorities and volunteers launched a massive search for Breasia which eventually extended into neighboring Clinton County. Police have shared very few details about the missing person’s investigation, though at a news conference on July 22, Davenport Police Chief Paul Sikorski appeared to suggest that Breasia’s family had not been entirely cooperative.
As WQAD-8 reports, Sikorski paused before answering a reporter’s question about Breasia’s family’s cooperation with police.
“We’re definitely focusing on family and definitely interviewing family members, ” he eventually said. “I think the cooperation level, that is something that may come out later on.”
Davenport Police have not made any further comments on the matter, but Breasia’s mother Aishia Lankford recently spoke to WQAD-8 about the police chief’s remarks.
“At that exact moment? We took it as, who the hell are you talking to?” Lankford said. “Because we have been cooperative. We have been listening.”
Breasia’s mother suggested the police chief may have been referring to Dinkins and his family members.
“Henry. Henry’s mother. His girlfriend. His sister. You know those are the ones that are constantly going downtown trying to get his belongings, instead of trying to help me get into their brother’s head,” Lankford said.
Lankford had previously told a reporter that she and Dinkins were once in a relationship. He is believed to be the father of her son.
The missing girl’s mother also told WQAD-8 that she had given police her own cell phone to analyze, and that she is continuing to search for her daughter and raise public awareness in an effort to generate leads about Breasia’s disappearance.
“We know that we may be the ones that may be able to break the case just by getting her pictures out there, getting them on anybody’s hand that’s willing to take a flyer,” Lankford said.
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