PROSECUTORS HAVE REVEALED A DISTURBING NEW ALLEGATION IN THE D-EA-TH OF 4-YEAR-OLD JAVEAYAH HARRIS… AND THE DETAILS ARE LEAVING PEOPLE H0RRIFIED
AIKEN, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT/Gray News) – The 4-year-old at the center of a days-long search in South Carolina is dead, the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office believes.
“It’s the outcome we all feared and sadly the outcome we must face,” Aiken County Sheriff Marty Sawyer said during a Saturday press conference about the search for Javeayah Harris.
Authorities said Javeayah’s parents, 22-year-old Michilae Herring and 23-year-old Johmarea Harris, were arrested Saturday in connection with her death.
Both are charged with homicide by child abuse and filing a false police report, the sheriff’s office said.
Herring and Harris were booked into the Aiken County Detention Center. The sheriff’s office hasn’t released their mugshots yet.
Investigators said they are now searching for Javeayah’s body in an area outside Aiken County.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is also assisting with the investigation and has deployed a helicopter to the Great Falls area in Union County, South Carolina.
The sheriff’s office said they believe she’s been dead for about a month.Neighbors in the area of the search told WRDW they haven’t seen Javeayah in months.
The Aiken County Sheriff’s Office released the following statement:
Statement and update from Sheriff Sawyer: “This is the hardest announcement in my 36 years working in law enforcement. I am deeply saddened to tell you our investigation and evidence leads us to believe 4-year-old Javeayah Harris is deceased. It is the outcome that we all feared and sadly, it is now what we face and we will face it together as a community. Our search for Javeayah drives on. We are continuing to put massive law enforcement resources to work. We all hoped and prayed to find her alive, but it is still extremely important we bring her home. We are searching an area of interest not in Aiken County. Today, I am announcing that we have arrested Javeayah’s parents. We have arrested her dad, 23-year-old Johmarea Harris for homicide by child abuse and her mom, 22-year-old Michilae Herring, for homicide by child abuse, and filing a false police report. Additional charges may be forthcoming. We have spoken to Javeayah’s extended family and we ask for you to respect their privacy. We can only imagine what they are going through. We put every resource available to find Javeayah to bring her home safely. Sadly, it was already too late to save her the moment the 911 call came in on June 30th. At this time our investigation supports that she has been deceased for at least 1 month. I want to express my sincere gratitude to every law enforcement agency, local, state, and federal, and our volunteer fire departments in Aiken County, who stood alongside us throughout this process. There are too many to name but specifically Special Agent in Charge Kevin Moore with FBI Columbia, Chief Keel with SLED, Sheriff Rowland with Edgefield County, Sheriff Koon with Lexington County, Sheriff Boan with Kershaw County, Sheriff Gino Brantley with Richmond County, Chief Barranco with Aiken Public Safety and Chief Johnson with North Augusta Public Safety, Paul Matthews with Aiken County Aiken County Department of Emergency Management and all the other Sheriff’s throughout South Carolina who called me offering their support and encouragement, throughout this whole process. The professionalism, cooperation, and dedication demonstrated by everyone involved has been nothing short of exceptional. Every agency brought valuable resources, specialized expertise and an unwavering commitment to our mission. I also want to thank you, our media partners, from covering this investigation, helping spread Javeayah’s picture to our community in hopes of locating her. And finally, I want to thank our community. From the encouragement, patients, prayers and support you have shown have meant more than words can express. We received an overwhelming amount of support, through shared information, donations of food and water and countless acts of kindness that reminded us why we are so proud to serve this community. I would also like to especially Bethel Baptist Church for opening their doors and providing food, water, air conditioning, and restrooms.”
A timeline of the search for Javeayah Harris
Javeayah was first reported missing Tuesday night, launching a massive search effort that brought together multiple law enforcement agencies. Crews searched thousands of acres over several days as concern grew over the child’s safety in dangerous summer heat, with temperatures nearing 100 degrees.
On Friday, after four days of searching with no sign of the 4-year-old, the sheriff’s office announced that visible search efforts would be scaled back.
“In the coming days, our work will be less visible to the public. While organized search activities will be reduced, rest assured the search for Javeayah will not stop until we find her,” the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office said Friday afternoon.
Bethel Baptist Church served as a command post throughout the search. On Friday morning, investigators gathered and prayed outside the church before search efforts resumed around 10:45 a.m.
The scene near the church appeared quieter Friday than in previous days, but the urgency remained.
Deputies continued stopping vehicles, searching cars and conducting interviews as part of the investigation. An orange traffic sign near the church warned drivers: “Emergency scene ahead.”
Roadblocks near the search area ended around 7 p.m. Friday, according to crews at the scene.
The sheriff’s office said that while the search may be less visible to the public, investigators will continue working until Javeayah is found.
The area covered encompassed 5,000 acres by Friday afternoon.
