Joe Yates
Warning: This article contains discussion of disturbing details surrounding the death of a young boy, which some readers may find distressing
A seven-year-old boy whose body was discovered just two days after he was reported to have been kidnapped died weeks prior to his disappearance, it has been suggested.
Two people have been arrested and charged in connection with the death of young Hershall Creachbaum, a non-verbal wheelchair user from Dayton, Ohio.
His body was located the same day the missing person listing was filed on Saturday (July 12).
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The schoolboy's mom, Ashley Johnson, has been charged with obstruction of justice and failure to report a death, while Michael Kendrick has been charged with three counts of tampering with evidence, as well as abuse.
At around 3.45am on the day in question, 38-year-old Kendrick is understood to have dialled 911 to report that Hershall had been kidnapped.
Later that day, Hershall's body was discovered.
Speaking at a press conference held by Dayton Police Department yesterday, Chief Kamran Afzal confirmed that his authority believe Hershall had been dead for weeks prior to his body being found.
"In our line of work, unfortunately, we do see evil acts on routine basis," he told reporters. "This calendar shown in this situation towards this child is horrendous and truly evil."
He explained that following the call from Kendrick, cops received information to suggest that Hershall had not been seen for weeks, and so the probe switched to a homicide investigation.
Afzal continued: "It was such a tragic thing; not that we don't see tragedies all the time in Dayton, but when you have a non-verbal, autistic kid - somebody helpless, who should be taken care of and looked after.
"The fact that he was deceased for several weeks, and we didn't even get a call. We get a call in the manner that we get, which is, 'hey, the the child was kidnapped' - not that something tragic happened. 'I'm just calling you, I finally have a clear conscience'."
Tragically, Hershall has an older sister who has since been taken into the care of the state with a foster family, and it is understood that Hershall was known to the Children's Services Bureau - although a case was not open at the time of his death.
Hershall was under the custody of his mom when he disappeared, although he had previously lived with his grandmother before he was given back to his mom.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues or want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, the Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and receives calls from throughout the United States, Canada, US Virgin Islands, Guam and Puerto Rico.