Ohio Police and Volunteers Continue Search For Missing Toddler Whose Mother Was Murdered

Authorities and volunteers in Ohio continued their search over the weekend for a toddler who vanished around the same time that his mother was found stabbed to death.

Nyteisha Lattimore, 29, was found dead in the early morning hours of December 12. Cincinnati Police arrested 20-year-old Desean Brown for her murder soon after the discovery, the department confirmed in a news release, but Lattimore’s 3-year-old son, Nylo Lattimore, was pronounced missing soon after. The child’s stroller was located near his mother’s body, which was found near the Purple People Bridge.

Volunteers joined with nonprofits North Star International and Ohio LandSAR on Sunday to form search parties and scour the land surrounding the Ohio River, WKRC reports. Both groups have organized searches for the boy every weekend since his mother’s death, and have utilized the skills of “retired police officers, EMTs, and firefighters,” a spokesperson for North Star International told the outlet.

“We hope we are successful and that we can help the Lattimore family have closure, but there are no guarantees. All we can do is get out here and do our best, which all these volunteers continue to do,” North Star International spokesperson Tracy Campbell told WKRC.

Nyteisha Lattimore was in a relationship with Brown, who is believed to have stabbed her multiple times with an unknown weapon in an apartment in Cincinnati on December 11, one day before her body was found, police said in an arrest affidavit obtained by Oxygen.com. After the discovery of her body, authorities found a stroller nearby that her family said belonged to her. Despite an immediate search of the area surrounding the river, as well as a search of the apartment where she lived with her boy, authorities have not found the missing toddler.

Search efforts by North Star International have concluded for the time being, WKRC reports. Potential evidence found during previous searches has been turned over to the proper authorities, who will test the items to see if there are any traces of the boy’s DNA, according to WKRC.

Brown has been indicted on two counts of murder and one count each of felonious assault, gross abuse of a corpse, and tampering with evidence, FOX19 reports. He pleaded not guilty during a brief court hearing on December 14, according to another report from the outlet. A judge set his bond at $1 million.

Nylo Lattimore has brown eyes and black hair, according to a missing person alert issued by police. Anyone with any information on his whereabouts is encouraged to contact the Cincinnati Police Department at 513-765-1212 or submit an anonymous tip online at TIP411.com.