A 14-month-old Maryland boy who had gone missing in Columbus, Ohio last week was discovered dead in a creek on Wednesday morning, reported the Ohio State Police. The infant’s mother, Dainesha Stevens, also of Maryland, has been arrested and is now in the Franklin County jail on a $150,000 bond due to the fact she is facing charges of endangering two of her children and allegedly tampering with crime scene evidence. It is reported she might also be facing other charges now that her boy’s deceased body has been discovered reports The New York Daily News.
Stevens had allegedly lied to Ohio State Police about the baby and said she had abandoned him on the porch of a stranger’s house. She also reported that her daughter, age 6, had gone missing on Christmas Eve. The little boy, Cameron Beckford, was discovered deceased in the water.
Stevens first rang up the Columbus city police on Monday morning and informed them that her young daughter had disappeared. The woman allegedly informed police that she had been visiting a friend in Columbus for the holidays and her daughter went missing on Christmas Eve after Stevens allowed her to visit with an acquaintance.
The Ohio State Police were called in and law enforcement stated the entire story sounded odd to them. They said in a press release that when Stevens called in to make her report over her missing 6 year-old daughter, her story was full of discrepancies, and they were quick to discover that she never once mentioned that the young boy had also disappeared.
Stevens called the Columbus City Police at about 3:05 p.m. Monday regarding her missing daughter. She complained that she had not seen her daughter since Christmas Eve when she allowed her daughter to visit with a friend of a friend to celebrate Christmas. During that phone call, sources say, Stevens stated the acquaintance did not want to bring the child back.
She allegedly told law enforcement that she had just met the family and they seemed nice, but they refused to return her child. She added that she did not know what she was supposed to believe about them and that they would not tell her anything about her daughter.
Detectives were soon sent out to a nearby restaurant, where they met Stevens. Shortly after that meeting, police stated that her story did not hold up, and that another child had also disappeared. The mother admitted that she was from Maryland and had come to Ohio to visit a friend for the holidays. She explained she had brought her son and daughter.
The six year-old girl was found safe at a nearby house within an hour of law enforcement talking with Stevens. However, they soon discovered the troubling story about her son Cameron and about how long he had been gone. Stevens initially declared that she had abandoned Cameron on the porch of a stranger because, she said, she could no longer take care of him. Ohio State Police now believe that could be a lie to cover for a potential homicide.
Now that the infant has been discovered dead, Sevens will stay in the Franklin County Jail and along with the charges she faces, it is likely she will face additional ones. A dive crew discovered the young child’s body in Big Walnut Creek on Wednesday morning. Stevens had her first appearance in Franklin County Court on Wednesday and has been placed on suicide watch.
By Michelle Larson
Photo by Bruce Falling