Dead child found; caregivers missing

HILLSBOROUGH -- Orange County Sheriff's investigators have a different kind of missing person case.

For more than eight years, they have been trying without success to find the parents and loved ones of a deceased boy. On Sept. 25, 1998, someone cutting grass and underbrush around a billboard near Interstate 85 in Hillsborough discovered the boy's skeletal remains at the edge of a wooded area. Authorities think the child was murdered.

"Someone just dumped his body on the side of the road," Orange County Sheriff's deputy Tim Horne said. "They didn't bury the body or even try to cover it up with anything."

Deputies think the boy was white or Hispanic and between 8 and 12 years old, Horne said.

The brush cutter had last worked in the area in April and had seen nothing unusual. So, investigators think the remains had been in that patch of woods for three to four months. They found a pair of khaki shorts, underwear and white tube socks still inside a pair of black, size three athletic shoes. Medical examiners measured the bones and estimated the child's height at 4 feet 11.

The sheriff's office contacted the news media, talked with Hispanic residents and distributed fliers about the boy, but they couldn't identify him. No missing person report that fit the description was filed locally, and no school authorities reported a student who had suddenly vanished.

Worse still, no one came forward to claim the remains.

In 2001, authorities decided to move the case into the national spotlight by contacting "America's Most Wanted."

"It was supposed to air in 2001," Horne said, "but then the terrorist attacks happened, and it got bumped."

The sheriff's office did receive assistance from the FBI and the Smithsonian Institution, where a series of facial sketches were created based on the child's skeletal structure and DNA.

Sheriff's investigators tried to trace the manufacturer of the child's pants and shoes. They found that the inexpensive 2SX sport shoe is sold at a number of retail outlets. They also learned that the khaki shorts worn by the child appeared to be an Izod knock-off commonly found at the Buckhorn Flea Market, which is near where the child's remains were found.

After examining the clothing, Horne came up with a theory: "This child was with someone who was here illegally. Something happened to this child, and they were scared to contact somebody, so they left the remains."

A team of sheriff's deputies worked on the case. But Horne, who did the forensics work, has been with it since day one. He keeps a box of evidence related to the case under his desk.

Horne wants justice done, if possible, and to help parents who may be out there with no clue about what happened to their son.

"Everyone is alarmed when something happens to a child," Horne said. "There's a universal concern to give the parents closure."

Anyone with information about the case is urged to call the Orange County Sheriff's Office at (919) 644-3050.