Family members accused of killing a 6-year-old Illinois boy apparently tried to punish him before this death, according to reports, leaving the child’s father heartbroken.
During a court hearing Sunday, prosecutors said that the mother Damari Perry, identified as Jannie Perry, told relatives the boy was going to be punished for “something he’d done,” ABC 7 reports. The punishment reportedly consisted of forcing the child to stand in a cold shower until he threw up and passed out. He never regained consciousness.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Perry reported her son, Damari Perry, missing on January 5, a week after the boy’s actual death. Perry and Damari’s 16-year-old sister said the boy vanished the day before after a woman named “Monique” and a man known as “Wacko” or “Chaos” drove the two siblings to a party/playdate in Skokie.
The sister said she had several drinks and fell asleep, and when she awoke, Damari and “Wacko” were gone.
“She had a cocktail. I guess someone put something in her drink. She ended up falling asleep. When she woke up, my son was gone. When she questioned the girl about where my son was the girl said she didn’t know,” Damari Perry previously said.
Police launched an investigation and quickly determined that the evidence they found didn’t match up with the story told by the family and was “completely false.”
On Saturday morning, North Chicago police announced that Damari’s body had been found near an abandoned home in the 700 block of Van Buren Street in downtown Gary, Indiana.
“Prosecutors, investigators, and victim support professionals worked late into the night and into the early morning to make sure we understood this tragic crime now, because of their rigorous and detailed investigation, we will be able to bring Damari’s killers to justice in a courtroom,” Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said.
Demari’s father, Dalvin, told ABC 7 that he hadn’t seen his son in quite some time but got word from others about his disappearance and death.
“I’m lost, man. I feel like I lost a part of myself when I got that call,” the boy’s father said.
“He was the best thing you can ever have for the time that I had to spend with him. It was some of the best time that I had in my life. He was just the life of me, man. It’s like you can walk in the room and everybody loved him.”
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office later said those arrested were Jannie and Jeremiah Perry and a minor sibling who was being charged in juvenile court.
During Sunday’s court hearing, prosecutors said Jannie and Jeremiah Perry made plans on how to dispose of the child’s body and how to get him back to Indiana. Prosecutors said no one bothered to call 911.
Jeremiah Perry has been charged with aggravated battery causing bodily harm to a child under 12, concealing a homicidal death, and obstructing justice. His bond was set at $3 million, and he’s been ordered to have no contact with family He’s due in court again on Tuesday.
Jannie Perry did not appear in court on Sunday. She has been charged with first-degree murder, concealment of a homicidal death, and obstructing justice.
The Lake County coroner is scheduled to conduct an autopsy on the boy’s body on Monday. More charges could follow, pending the autopsy report.
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[Feature Photo: Damari Perry/North Chicago Police Department]
