Maleah Davis‘ stepfather, Darion Vence, is now a person of interest in the case of her disappearance, according to Houston police.
Vence was the last person to see Maleah before she went missing. Vence told police he, his 2-year-old son and Maleah were abducted Friday evening by three men in a blue Chevrolet pickup truck, investigators said. He said he was knocked out by one of the men and when he regained consciousness, Maleah and the family’s car were gone.
Initially, police said he told detectives that he walked to the hospital after being in and out of consciousness for almost 24 hours before reporting her missing. But then, officials from the Sugar Land Police Department — which is helping Houston police with the investigation — told Fox 26 Tuesday afternoon that Vence said he was dropped off, making his story inconsistent.
Investigators initially said they were not considering Vence a suspect, even releasing a photo of him on Twitter that showed an injury to his forehead.
“I realize there’s a lot of blanks in that story, but we’re hoping the public can fill in the blanks,” Sgt. Mark Holbrook said at a news conference on Sunday.
Volunteers from Texas EquuSearch searched the woods and grass near U.S. 59 and Greens Road on Monday for any evidence that could point to Davis’ location.
“We want to start checking every single dumpster just in case,” Texas EquuSearch’s Tim Miller told KTRK-TV. “We believe in miracles. Let’s hope we get one.”
Police said the 4-year-old girl has undergone brain surgeries that “needed a lot of care” and was sick this week.
Child Protective Services officials told KTRK-TV that Maleah was returned to her home in February — about six months after she was removed last August from her home, when the agency investigated allegations of physical abuse related to a head injury she sustained. Brittany Bowens, Davis’ mother, told the television station the injury was determined to have been caused by a fall, and that she is currently terrified for her daughter.
