Beau Brennan Belson, the 5-year-old boy who went missing from his Six Lakes, Michigan, home on Christmas Day, was found dead the next day in a nearby pond.
“Unfortunately, he was found in a pond, and he’s no longer with us,” state police First Lt. Kevin Sweeney said Thursday, the Detroit News reported. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family.”
Beau, who had autism, was playing with family members outside in the yard in front of the home on Christmas Day when he was noticed missing.
His family members went searching for Beau, but when couldn’t find him. They then alerted the Michigan State Police. A massive search was conducted that evening and continued overnight, involving three K-9 teams, search and rescue teams, a helicopter with infra-red detection, drone support, and more than 1,000 volunteers, Lt. David Cope told People.
At that time, police had no idea of the whereabouts of Beau.
“The belief is he wandered away from the house, but nobody knows which direction he left from his yard,” Cope said. At the time, police had no idea whether Beau was moving around or ducked down somewhere.
“Any five-year-old is probably scared, but we don’t know if he is hunkering down hiding or moving,” he said. “We want to find him as quick as we can.”
“Of course, temperatures did dip down close to freezing last night,” state police Lt. David Cope said. “Any person, regardless of age, you don’t want them being alone in the wilderness for several hours at a time, especially in the 30-degree weather range.”
However, by the next day, Michigan State Police posted an update on Twitter, confirming the child had been found deceased in a pond not far from his home:
“UPDATE: The body of 5-year-old Beau Belson was recovered from a pond adjacent to the home from which he was reported missing shortly after noon today by the MSP Marine Services Team. The MSP Lakeview Post and 6th District detectives will continue with their investigation.”
UPDATE: The body of 5-year-old Beau Belson was recovered from a pond adjacent to the home from which he was reported missing shortly after noon today by the MSP Marine Services Team. The MSP Lakeview Post and 6th District detectives will continue with their investigation.
— @MSPWestMI (@mspwestmi) December 26, 2019
Although no foul play is expected at the moment, the investigation continues, WSFA reported.
