Remains found in search for missing girl identified as Maleah Davis

The remains of a child found in Arkansas last week are those of a missing 4-year-old Texas girl, Maleah Davis, a medical examiner said Monday. The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences said it had positively identified the remains, which were flown to Texas from Arkansas, where they had been found near a freeway outside the town of Hope.

Maleah Davis KHOU-TV

Derion Vence, the man who had been arrested in connection with Maleah’s disappearance, told a community activist he had disposed of her body there. The institute of forensic sciences said the cause and manner of her death are not yet determined.

Vence, the ex-fiance of Maleah’s mother, remains jailed on a charge of tampering with evidence. The 27-year-old had claimed he, Maleah and his 2-year-old son were abducted on May 4 by a group of men in a truck.

He said he and his son were freed the next day but the kidnappers kept Maleah and his silver Nissan Altima. Police said Vence’s story kept changing and didn’t add up.

Police arrested Vence and charged him with tampering with evidence, specifically a human corpse. He’s being held on a $40,000 bond.

Tim Miller, director of search-and-recovery group Texas EquuSearch, told CBS affiliate KHOU-TV he was at the scene when the remains were found. “It was a gruesome sight,” Miller told the station. “It was a terrible sight to see. It took hours gathering up body parts and evidence.”

The image he said he couldn’t shake was seeing a little pink barrette among the remains thrown out like trash, KHOU-TV reports.