Male caregiver to face murder count in connection with missing 4-year-old: Police

Oklahoma police have arrested the caregivers of a 4-year-old lady who was reported missing after a postal service discovered her sister wandering alone outdoors, as one of many suspects now faces a murder cost in connection with the kid’s disappearance, authorities mentioned.

Local authorities started looking for Athena Brownfield Tuesday afternoon, when the postal employee found her 5-year-old sister and notified police, in accordance to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, which can also be concerned in the search.

Alysia Adams, 31, was arrested Thursday afternoon in Grady County, Oklahoma, on two counts of kid neglect, the company mentioned. Her husband, Ivon Adams, 36, was taken into custody in Arizona on Thursday and is at the moment on the Maricopa County Jail awaiting extradition to Oklahoma on one count of murder in the primary diploma and one count of kid neglect, it said.

A spokesperson for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Brook Arbeitman, instructed ABC News she couldn’t launch extra information on the fees amid the lively investigation.

During a Friday courtroom look in Maricopa County, Ivon Adams waived his proper to an extradition listening to.

“I need to get there and fight this,” he told the court.

The two sisters had been reportedly in the couple’s care when the 5-year-old was discovered alone outdoors their house in Cyril, police mentioned. Authorities wouldn’t remark right now on how they turned the first caregivers of the kids.

Meanwhile, the seek for Athena continues, authorities mentioned Friday.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol on Wednesday issued a missing and endangered particular person alert for Athena to folks in a 15-mile radius of Cyril, situated about 70 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.

Law enforcement is working to put collectively a precise timeline of when Athena was final seen, in accordance to Arbeitman.

Her sister didn’t require any medical care and at the moment is in protecting custody with the state, Arbeitman mentioned.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and troopers from Fort Sill are amongst these helping in the search, Arbeitman mentioned. State troopers had been conducting sonar searches of our bodies of water in and round Cyril on Wednesday. Search canines from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections and drones from the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs have additionally been employed in the search.

Volunteers additionally helped conduct a grid search, trying in vacant homes and native waterways, police mentioned.

Arbeitman mentioned authorities are discovering gadgets in city that “could be relevant” and useful to the case, although didn’t elaborate.

“We are finding things that we hope might give us clues,” she mentioned.

Trash service in the city has been suspended amid the search “in an effort to search for additional clues as to Athena’s whereabouts,” Arbeitman instructed reporters Thursday.

Law enforcement is encouraging residents and companies to share any surveillance footage they might have, together with doorbell cameras, in addition to to search their properties.

Athena is described by authorities as being 3 ft tall and 45 kilos with gentle brown hair and blue eyes. Police imagine she was not too long ago carrying a butterfly hoodie.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is requested to contact the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations at 800-522-8017 or [email protected].