|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Heartbreaking news broke in the South Carolina Upstate this week when the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) announced that the body of a missing eight-year-old had been found in a body of water near the elementary school where he went missing.
Lionel Ramirez Cervantes, 8, of Simpsonville, S.C. was reported missing at approximately 11:10 a.m. EDT on Thursday (September 12, 2024) after he “ran off” from Bells Crossing Elementary School.
Within thirty minutes, GCSO deputies posted a notification to social media enlisting the public’s help in locating the second-grader, who was on the autism spectrum. The school was also placed on a hold while the search for Cervantes began.
***
“If anyone sees Lionel or has information concerning his whereabouts please call 911,” the sheriff’s office noted.
Two hours later, deputies pleaded with local residents to “check their property and camera systems to see if they had any activity on it that might have captured Lionel’s movements.”
A picture of Cervantes running through the hallway of Bells Crossing just moments before his disappearance was provided in an effort to help community members recognized…
***
***
Shortly before 4:15 p.m. EDT, sheriff Hobart Lewis announced the tragic conclusion of the search that involved his deputies, agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) and the Simpsonville police department.
“The GCSO is heartbroken to report that 8-year-old Lionel Ramirez Cervantes, who ran off from Bells Crossing Elementary School, has been located in a body of water off Lenox Lake Drive, a short distance from the school,” Lewis’ agency announced.
Cervantes’ body was found by members of GCSO’s dive team in a small pond located just 1,200 feet from where he was last seen at the school.
According to Lewis, staff at the school chased Cervantes as he ran off but were unsuccessful in preventing him from leaving school property.
“He got across the playground, he got away from staff and at some point – we don’t know how or why – wound up in that pond,” Lewis told reporters at a press conference.
“He eluded them,” Lewis added, noting that Cervantes “got over a fence” before disappearing into a wooded area adjacent to the school.
Our media outlet plans to investigate the circumstances which led to Cervantes’ disappearance – and to make inquiries about law enforcement’s efforts to locate him. At this point, however, we would simply urge everyone following this tragedy to keep Cervantes’ family and friends in their prayers.
Stay tuned…
***
UPDATE |
Lionel’s mother responds, additional information released on investigation.
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the owner and founding editor of FITSNews. Prior to founding his own news outlet, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina, bass guitarist in an alternative rock band and bouncer at a Columbia, S.C. dive bar. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
***
WANNA SOUND OFF?
Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.
1 comment
What you don’t read is how many schools are forced to remove door locks, etc, to prevent or slow down students from running away because of fire safety concerns. As someone who works with special needs children like this one, it’s a constant battle and schools aren’t staffed well enough to make up for those physical barriers.