Update (May 7, 2019): The search for the four-year-old has stretched to Sugar Land, Texas, a town 40 minutes away from Houston, reports Fox 26.
Darion Vence claims Davis was kidnapped after he was accosted and briefly abducted by three Hispanic men driving a pickup truck in Houston. He later woke up in Sugar Land. Investigators said there are inconsistencies in Vence’s story. Initially, he told detectives he walked to the hospital after Davis went missing. These inconsistencies have prompted local news outlets to report that Houston law enforcement are now looking at Vence as a suspect.
Amber Alert Update: Houston police tell me Darion Vence is a person of interest in his stepdaughter Maleah’s disappearance. Sugar Land police tell me he changed his story, first saying he walked to the hospital, then saying someone dropped him off. https://t.co/YcS3luozmZ
— Ivory Hecker FOX 26 (@IvoryHecker) May 7, 2019
2/2: Photo of assault victim, Mr. Darion Vence, who is Maleah's stepfather, stated he was unconscious for almost 24 hrs. Detectives ask anyone who saw Darion or Maleah after 9 pm Friday (May 3) to 6 pm on Sat to contact HPD Homicide 713-308-3600 or @CrimeStopHOU at 713-222-TIPS. pic.twitter.com/nuZHA1EQPY
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) May 5, 2019
Original: A search is underway for a 4-year-old Texas girl whose stepfather claims she was kidnapped.
Maleah Davis has been missing since Friday, reports CNN. Her stepfather, Darion Vence, told police he was driving with Davis and her one-year-old brother in Houston, Texas, when he heard a popping noise, similar to a popped tire. He reportedly pulled over to check it out and when he got out the car, he was approached by two Hispanic men in a blue pickup truck.
One of the men supposedly said, "Maleah looks very nice, looks very sweet," and the other struck Vence on the head, rendering him unconscious.
2/2: Photo of assault victim, Mr. Darion Vence, who is Maleah's stepfather, stated he was unconscious for almost 24 hrs. Detectives ask anyone who saw Darion or Maleah after 9 pm Friday (May 3) to 6 pm on Sat to contact HPD Homicide 713-308-3600 or @CrimeStopHOU at 713-222-TIPS. pic.twitter.com/nuZHA1EQPY
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) May 5, 2019
Vence said he woke up in the bed of the truck with the kids and kept going in and out of consciousness until 6 p.m. the next day. When Vence finally regained his composure, he was lying on the side of a highway with the one-year-old but Davis was gone. The silver Nissan Altima Vence was driving is also missing.
1/2: Photos displayed at the media briefing: first is victim's stolen car, a silver 2011 Nissan Altima with TX paper tags 3092G9, seen on a traffic camera near Hwy 59 & State Hwy 6 in Sugar Land about 3 pm Saturday (May 4). Second is photo likeness of suspects' blue truck. pic.twitter.com/rseWWqO4s4
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) May 5, 2019
He walked to a hospital for treatment and later reported the girl missing.
Houston police Sgt. Mark Holbrook acknowledged there are “a lot blanks in the story" and he hopes the media attention will help investigators "fill in the blanks."
Holbrook believes the case has added urgency because Davis had health issues related to a head injury.
"She's needed a lot of care," he said. "This week she was sick too."
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The head injury caused Davis and her brothers to be removed from their home by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in August, according to KTRK. The agency determined Davis’ injury was caused by a fall and gave the children back in February. The family remained under CPS supervision and received monthly visits. CPS is working with law enforcement to investigate Davis’ disappearance.
Brittany Bowens, Davis’ mother, tearfully described how her daughter’s absence has affected her.
"My spirit is so broken, I feel so lost,” she said. “I can't concentrate, I can't focus. It's so overwhelming for me. It doesn't seem real.”
Tim Miller, an investigator from Texas EquuSearch Mounted Search & Recovery, is also affected by the case.
"We want to start checking every single dumpster just in case. We believe in miracles. Let's hope we get one,” Miller said.
"I'm choked up right now thinking about her. I've been on these cases before. If it doesn't touch your heart, and you don't get emotional, you're just not human."
Investigators contacted Davis’ biological father and he is cooperating.
Davis was wearing a pink bow in her hair, a light blue jacket, jeans and gray, white and pink tennis shoes when she disappeared. She has black hair, brown eyes, weighs about 30-40 pounds and is about 3 feet tall.
FIND MALEAH – Search efforts resume today for 4-year-old #MaleahDavis in NE Houston. According to CPS officials, the girl and her two siblings were removed as the agency investigated allegations of physical abuse related to her head injury -> https://t.co/rlEtPTermx. #abc13
pic.twitter.com/mj183RSlRb— Steve Campion (@SteveABC13) May 7, 2019
Anyone with information should contact the Houston Police Department at at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.
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