Where is 2-year-old Sylar Newton? *found deceased*

[Dakota Valkyrie]

A search is on for a 2-year-old boy who went missing in the woods of Yavapai County overnight Sunday.

Syler Newton was camping with his family at the Beaver Creek Campground near Highway 179 off I-17. At some point while everyone was asleep -- he disappeared.

Authorities said the woman who claimed to be Syler's mother is actually in the process of adopting him, so police are trying to locate Syler's biological mother.

Deputies, along with search and rescue personnel, were still searching Sunday night for the boy, who was described as having light brown hair and blue eyes and was wearing only a diaper. He is approximately 3 feet tall and weighs about 20 pounds.

Syler was last seen around midnight inside a tent sleeping with other family members. At about 1:45 a.m., the family discovered he was missing from his sleeping bag. They searched the area briefly and called 911 after failing to locate Syler.
[...]

The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office has over 50 people involved in the coordinated search effort. A DPS Ranger completed a flyover Sunday morning and is expected to return and search again.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news...-site-07252010

Detectives interviewed about 20 people who were camping at the site, D'Evelyn said. Also, they are checking into any sex offenders who might be in the area. Late Sunday afternoon, they had yet to determine whether the toddler wandered off or had been kidnapped.

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sec...rticleID=83631

Officials said the woman who reported Syler missing claimed to be the boy’s mother, but it was later discovered she is his adoptive mother and is currently in the process of gaining custody.

Deputies do not believe any of Syler’s biological relatives were in the area at the time of his disappearance, but authorities are trying to contact the boy’s biological family. Officials said there are no signs of foul play.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region...-az-campground

[Jessiesgirl1108]

Why did I instantly think the worst...adopted mother killed the little boy and is faking the whole camping trip just to say he disappeared in the middle of the night from the tent...

[BreakTheSilence]

Something just doesn't seem right with this story. I'll withhold judgment until I know more though. I just know most 2 year olds won't venture far in pure darkness like there would be at a camp ground. I just hope and pray this baby is found safe and sound. I firmly believe once he's found someone needs to thoroughly investigate this "adoption" thing and make sure its on the up and up and that Syler is going into a loving, safe, nurturing home.

[koochie]

so scary....while i can agree with a 2 yr old being too afraid of the dark to venture out..

i can see him seeing an escape door left open and running out into the dark only after getting out there and possibly 10 feet from the tent realizing it was so dark and then not knowing how or where to get back. and just keep walking or running in the dark..

i wonder how close to the road the campsites are? seems like a big highway..i hope he;s ok and just with another family...8(. bless his little heart.

[Ladyeridan]

Full moon last night, It wouldn't have been terribly dark. it was bright enough in my area that I was casting a very clear shadow in the yard.

[ineedanap]

My hinky meter is up on this one as well. My 4 yo still asks for the night light if she comes in our room at night, there's no way she'd venture far in the dark, by herself. I hope they find the little guy.

[AngelFire]

Ineedanap, your hinky meter and my hinky meter are both going off. The details don't sound right at all.

[Silvahalo]

I'm suspicious for sure as 2 yo's are coming into more imaginative thoughts at this age. The dark not an issue before becomes one around this time...usually. My 2 yo is now saying "not real mama? ownie books?", on pretty much anything that concerns him.

It is possible he wondered off as Koochie said and couldn't find his way back in the dark. I'd think he'd start crying something loud tho and wake the camp up. I really hope little Syler is found safe and sound.

[Dneilz]

How does a two year old unzip a tent himself??? My daughter was 2 last time we went camping and she couldn't work the zipper...

[Silvahalo]

According to YCSO spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn, detectives spent the night searching the campsite and all its contents. Two vehicles were towed from the site for further inspection.

This morning, specially trained bloodhounds continue a grid search of the area hoping to pick of any scent of Syler and this will be the focus throughout the day.

If anyone has information regarding Syler and/or his whereabouts, please contact the Sheriff's Office immediately via 911 or (928) 771-3260.

You know with a creek in the immediate area little Syler might have very well woke up walked out and fallen in the creek. Some kids are rather fearless at this age, but the dark, is usually a deterrent. What if the tent was left open, not zipped?

It's dark and late now......

[jo_momma_82]

How does a two year old unzip a tent himself??? My daughter was 2 last time we went camping and she couldn't work the zipper...

My 2 y/o can unzip/zip our tent... she even removed one of our child safety door knob covers recently (luckily, we caught her before she could make a break for it)!

As Silva said "Some kids are rather fearless at this age"... my 2 y/o is truly fearless & the dark is not a deterrent for her. She is the youngest of our 4 kids & she is our first that has totally blown us away in regards to having very little fear as well as having the ability to bypass child-proofing. These day's, I pretty much sleep with one eye open.

I'm not ready to call b.s. on this story just yet b/c I know from personal experience that some toddlers have no fear of the dark & zipping/unzipping a tent isn't that difficult of a task for a 2 y/o.

[Dneilz]

My 2 y/o can unzip/zip our tent... she even removed one of our child safety door knob covers recently (luckily, we caught her before she could make a break for it)!

As Silva said "Some kids are rather fearless at this age"... my 2 y/o is truly fearless & the dark is not a deterrent for her. She is the youngest of our 4 kids & she is our first that has totally blown us away in regards to having very little fear as well as having the ability to bypass child-proofing. These day's, I pretty much sleep with one eye open.

I'm not ready to call b.s. on this story just yet b/c I know from personal experience that some toddlers have no fear of the dark & zipping/unzipping a tent isn't that difficult of a task for a 2 y/o.

I guess it depends on where you leave off with the zipper. Our tent allows us to leave the zipper at the high part of the "upside down 'U' type opening".... and also it would depend on the lighting in a tent. If it is dark out, how could one see where the zipper end is? Our tent also has not only a door but a screen part to that door. I will admit that I had one escape artist. That child is my oldest and later was diagnosed with autism. He is the only hudini in out of my children. He too was able to advance over any gate, through any window... child proofed cupboards locks and door nobs. But to be honest, we never tried him out in a tent.....

I find it hard to believe that a 3 foot tall 2 year old, in the dark, would just get up.... not crying (nobody awake) have the dexterity to unzip a tent in the dark, wander out in the dark and become missing.... that isn't to say it isn't possible, but I can tell you that even at my age I need a flashlight to find my way through the door of a tent and out to the bathroom.
You would think it wouldn't take long, if the little guy was out and about before the mom or other campers heard him crying. It makes me sad to think this little guy could be curled up somewhere by a tree, but that is better than some of the other nightmarish thoughts that have also plagued my mind.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

I'm hoping the bio-mom snuck up and stole him. That way, he's at least safer than wandering the area. I know she may be a "bad lady", but if she cares enough to swipe him, maybe she will take care of him.

[Dneilz]

interesting video... small clip with 'custodial mother' in it.

http://www.azfamily.com/news/Massive...-99205609.html

[koochie]

still no word on him? if it's true he snuck out of the tent, he's surely no longer living..
8(...

[koochie]

The Flagstaff family went to the campsite on Friday. According to Dwight D'Evelyn, spokesman for the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office, the custodial mother claims she last saw Syler around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday inside a tent immediately adjacent to the tent she slept in.

that is very weird, why was he in another tent???...i would never let my 2 yr old sleep somewhere else while camping? thats very bizarre.

[MC30]

i just pray he's not in the woods alone.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

The FBI has also been called in for the case. They are interviewing the biological mother to find out the situation surrounding the boy's care.

D'Evelyn said more than 50 personnel responded to the scene as part of the coordinated search effort.
[...]

Specially trained bloodhounds continued a grid search of the area Monday, hoping to pick up any scent of Syler. Two vehicles were also towed from the site for further inspection.

Officials said they plan to search for at least two to three more days.

As of Monday night, they had searched a five mile radius surrounding the campsite.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region...rthern-arizona

[Silvahalo]

I think it is odd that the baby was left in another tent....alone? i hope not. The article simply says "other family" so I'm not sure if other children were there, that's the only reasoning could see in leaving him in a tent with the kids together. Still, 2 yo with out mama supervising is asking for trouble.

My feeling is he wandered off fell in the creek or simply got lost. I HATE thinking of 2 yo out in the elements in the dark by himself. The alternative is he was snatched or killed and dumped by someone closest to him. Any scenario is awful. I hope by some miracle little Syler is found alive and well.

[Lexismom]

I don't understand how no one woke up . I guess I am a light sleeper . I would of woke up before the baby got to his feet. Especially not being at home , in my own bed . Poor little guy, I hope he is safe with bio mother , who would risk jail/prison to see him again .

[AngelFire]

This is making my stomach turn

[Rhoni]

Talk about a nightmare for all involved... The temps. get so high there in the daytime. Searching is going to be a hot and hard job...

I am not saying anything as far as theory. I am ever suspicious :)

[totallytoddler]

From what I understand he was in another tent with an older sibling. I dont know how old though. I find that odd to put a baby in with another child...each adult should have been in with a child...I mean...IMO anyway...and the adult should sleep near or in front of the doorway...just in case.
I am a super safety girl/mom and all my sproutlettes are present and accounted for. I always kinda try to access the situation with the "what if" mindset. Prevention saves lives. Ok..I'll get off my soapbox. I hope they find little Syler soon.

[Rawrehz]

I live here in Yavapai County and it is all over the local news...
The campsite in Campe Verde, right near Cottonwood and under Sedona, is huge and gets drastically hot there. The creeks there aren't very deep for the most part. There are the common big dips but hopefully they weren't camped right near them... :(

From our local newspaper:

Yavapai County Sheriff's Office deputies and numerous search and rescue personnel remained at the Beaver Creek Campground continue the search for 2-year-old Syler Newton. Monday morning, highly trained bloodhounds are conducting a grid search of the area to make sure all possibilities of potential scent markings have been exhausted. It is expected the general search effort will continue throughout the day.

Late Sunday morning, YCSO detectives learned that the person who identified herself as Syler's mother is actually his custodial mom. She told detectives she is in the process of legally adopting Syler who has been in her care for several months. Detectives are attempting to verify this information and also intend to contact Syler's biological mother to learn about events which led to this current arrangement.

Syler and family, including the custodial mother, her mother, and her two children ages 10 and 12, all came to the campsite this past Friday. The family is from Flagstaff. The custodial mother claims she last saw Syler around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday inside a tent immediately adjacent to the tent in which she slept. Syler was sleeping with one of the custodial mom's children.

At approximately 1:45 a.m., the custodial mother found Syler missing and conducted a search before calling 911. The first official call recorded by YCSO Communications came around at 2:30 a.m. from a camp host. Deputies were on scene by 3 a.m. and conducted an initial search along with interviews of area campers. The full search effort began in earnest during the early morning hours on Sunday.

Investigators are still in the process of trying to verify a call from the custodial mother to YCSO Sunday morning. Cell phone reception is poor in the area and could have been a factor.



Check back to dCourier.com for a report from the scene on this developing story.


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UPDATE, 9:39 a.m., Monday:

BEAVER CREEK - The search for missing Syler Newton continued Monday morning.

The Flagstaff boy was camping on the Coconino National Forest near Sedona on the border of Yavapai County. Authorities are searching with bloodhounds, as well as with the Yavapai Jeep Posse.


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UPDATE, 5:41 p.m.:

BEAVER CREEK - More than 50 people fanned out Sunday to try to find a 2-year-old boy missing from the Beaver Creek campground.

Family members discovered Syler Newton was missing from his sleeping bag around 1:45 a.m. Sunday. They searched the area briefly then called 911. Deputies arrived on the scene and began a preliminary search and interviewed other campers nearby.

Syler was last seen around midnight inside a tent sleeping with other family members.

Dwight D'Evelyn, a spokesman for the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office, said searchers employed bloodhounds to try to find the boy's scent. Also searchers on horseback and ATVs have been scouring the area.

A Department of Public Safety helicopter also flew over the area, trying to catch a glimpse of the child.

Detectives interviewed about 20 people who were camping at the site, D'Evelyn said. Also, they are checking into any sex offenders who might be in the area. Late Sunday afternoon, they had yet to determine whether the toddler wandered off or had been kidnapped.

Syler was described as having light brown hair and blue eyes. He is about 3-feet tall and weighs about 20 pounds. He was wearing only a diaper. The campground is southeast of Highway 179 off I-17.

Anyone with information was asked to call the Sheriff's Office via 911 or (928) 771-3260.


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ORIGINAL REPORT, 1:09 p.m.:

Yavapai County Sheriff's Office Deputies, along with search and rescue personnel, are currently involved in the search for a missing 2-year-old boy last seen in the Beaver Creek Campground. The campground is located southeast of Highway 179 off I-17.

The boy's name is Syler Newton and he has light brown hair, blue eyes, and was wearing only a diaper. He is approximately 3 feet tall and weighs about 20 pounds.

Syler was last seen around midnight inside a tent while sleeping with other family members. At about 1:45 a.m. Sunday morning, the family discovered he was missing from his sleeping bag. They searched the area briefly and called 911 after failing to locate the child. Deputies arrived on scene and began a preliminary search and interviews with nearby campers.

Currently, YCSO has more than 50 personnel on scene as part of the coordinated search effort. DPS Ranger completed a flyover Sunday morning and is expected to return and search further.

If anyone has information regarding Syler and/or his whereabouts, please contact the Sheriff's Office immediately via 911 or 928-771-3260.

http://www.prescottaz.com/main.asp?S...rticleID=83631

[Rawrehz]

The camp site ^^

[Dakota Valkyrie]

The search continues for 2-year-old Syler Newton, who vanished from a northern Arizona campsite Sunday, new details of the police investigation are beginning to emerge.

While "the first priority is to find Syler," Yavapai County Sheriff's Office spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn said, authorities are also conducting an extensive investigation "into the incident, the parties involved and anything else that might shed light on Syler's disappearance."
[...]

Priem, 37, told authorities she is in the process of legally adopting Syler; however, detectives are still working to verify that.

Though the FBI was able to make contact Monday with Syler's biological mother, who lives out of state, D'Evelyn has said he did not know the outcome of that conversation. "Until we speak to the biological mother, we just don't know the full story," he told CNN.

According to the Arizona Supreme Court website, a Flagstaff woman named Christine Priem, born in September 1974, has been involved in several court cases dating back to 2003. While some of the incidents are traffic-related, there was a 2007 arrest and subsequent conviction for a "false report to law enforcement."

No other details about the case are provided on the website, and D'Evelyn declined to comment on it aside from saying, "That's all public record, so you're free to disclose it. We have that information, obviously, too."
[...]

Polygraph examinations for the family members involved in the case were scheduled for Monday, but the results of those tests have not yet been released.

Meanwhile, detectives from the Criminal Investigations Bureau are continuing to examine property and vehicles that were recovered from the campsite. The vehicles are a Toyota Camry and a Toyota Corolla, which belong to Priem and her mother, Nancy Collins, respectively.

Sheriff's deputies, along with search and rescue personnel and assisting units from the Coconino County Sheriff's Office, were still searching for Syler in and around the campsite area today. Dive teams are also examining nearby bodies of water.

Homicide investigators have been seen at the campsite, but authorities say their presence is routine and not necessarily indicative of foul play. The case has not yet been described as a criminal investigation and no suspects or people of interest have been named.
[...]

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/articl...ewton/19570929

[Valasca]

Here's something interesting:
Police Dig Deeper Into Case of Missing Ariz. Toddler

According to the Arizona Supreme Court website, a Flagstaff woman named Christine Priem, born in September 1974, has been involved in several court cases dating back to 2003. While some of the incidents are traffic-related, there was a 2007 arrest and subsequent conviction for a "false report to law enforcement."

No other details about the case are provided on the website, and D'Evelyn declined to comment on it aside from saying, "That's all public record, so you're free to disclose it. We have that information, obviously, too."

In a follow-up e-mail to AOL News, D'Evelyn said Christina Kay Priem was born in 1974.

Polygraph examinations for the family members involved in the case were scheduled for Monday, but the results of those tests have not yet been released.

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/articl...ms_ss=facebook

[Parrot Toes]

That poor little guy. I couldn't imagine the fear of being lost in wilderness, alone and in the dark. I truly hope he is found alive. The alternate scenario of him being abducted is equally as scary. I really hope his "adoptive mom" didn't do anything. My gut is leaning that way though, but I hope it's wrong.

My youngest son, would have been the kid to get out of the tent at night and wander off. He had no fear at that age. In fact, I guarantee that he would have done it, excited about the impending adventure. He is 14 now and he still gets up and sneaks around at night. I have learned to become an extremely sensitive sleeper because of it, but I never would have taken him camping (though I wanted to) when he was younger because I feared this would happen. Even sleeping at the door, that kid was and still is like a master friggin' escape artist.

I don't pray but I will hope and keep my fingers crossed that this little guy will be found alive, and if not alive, then I hope he did not suffer.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

The mother of a 2-year-old boy who went missing from a northern Arizona campground Sunday said she is in no way connected with his disapearance and is worried about what happened to him.

"He was gone without a trace," said Charity Newton. "How are you supposed to deal with that, really?"
[...]

He was staying with a friend of Charity Newton named Christina Priem, who is now Sylar's custodial parent.

"I don't know how to feel about it," Newton said. "I have moments of hope and then moments of sheer terror."
[...]

Newton said she struggles with depression and felt her son would have a better life with Priem and her family.

Sylar went missing from a tent in which Priem, her mother Nancy Collins and Priem's 12-year-old daughter were sleeping.

Priem's 14-year-old son and a friend were sleeping in an adjacent tent.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region...old-speaks-out

[Dakota Valkyrie]

The biological mother of the boy, who lives in Indiana, is speaking out. She told us by phone that she's planning to come to Arizona to search for her son.

"Please return him to the people that he knows, that he loves that love him, that's where he needs to be... we miss him very much, we're all very very worried about him," says Charity Newton. "If he's out there, I dont want them to stop looking for him, if there's a chance that he could be found alive I don't want them to stop."
[...]

"This is nothing to do with a custody battle, I do believe that this is just an unfortunate accident... just because my life is messed up and I felt like I wasn't going to be a very good provider for my son, doesn't mean that I didn't love or care for him," says Newton.

Investigators are looking at several different scenarios -- they're not sure if Syler wandered off, fell into a nearby creek, or was abducted. On Monday, Priem was given a polygraph test.

"I don't think that she would do anything to hurt my son. I wouldn't want to adopt my son out to someone that I feel would have hurt him."

Investigators haven't released the results of the polygraph test yet, but they have said Priem is being cooperative.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news...-out-7-27-2010