The search for 10 year old Malayshia Alford ended in heartbreak this week when investigators found her body in the trunk of a car in Lindenwold, New Jersey, and Philadelphia prosecutors charged her foster mother with murder.
Krasner also said the surveillance video showed someone other than Williams removing Malayshia's body from the home. He did not identify that person or say whether more charges are expected. The charges against Williams are allegations, and she is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Early reports during the search identified the girl as Jalayshia Alford. At the November 5 news conference, officials clarified that her name is Malayshia Alford.
Malayshia was last seen alive on October 22 at her home on the 500 block of North Simpson Street in West Philadelphia. She was reported missing on October 26 after she did not show up for school, and the search that followed drew in Philadelphia police, the FBI and the Camden County Prosecutors Office.
The break in the case came on November 4, when investigators recovered surveillance video from the early morning hours of October 26. The video appeared to show her body being carried out of the home in a bag at about 1:53 in the morning. That video pointed police to a witness, and the witness led them to a car parked at the Stonington Court apartment complex in Lindenwold, about 20 miles from her home.
Investigators opened the trunk of the car at about 11 at night on November 4 and found Malayshia still in the bag seen in the video. The New Jersey Medical Examiners Office conducted a preliminary examination and found the initial cause of death was blunt force trauma. Her death was ruled a homicide.
At a news conference on November 5, Assistant District Attorney Ashley Toczylowski announced the charges against 36 year old Carprice Williams, Malayshia's foster mother. The charges include murder, endangering the welfare of a child, criminal use of a communication facility, possession of an instrument of crime, recklessly endangering another person, tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse. Williams was taken into custody and is being held without bail. District Attorney Larry Krasner said Williams does not have a criminal record.
Krasner also said the surveillance video showed someone other than Williams removing Malayshia's body from the home. He did not identify that person or say whether more charges are expected. The charges against Williams are allegations, and she is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.Malayshia lived in foster care on North Simpson Street. In the days after she was reported missing, neighbors and volunteers joined the search, and her story spread across Philadelphia as the days passed with no sign of her. The discovery in Lindenwold turned a missing child case into a homicide prosecution against the woman entrusted with her care.
Early reports during the search identified the girl as Jalayshia Alford. At the November 5 news conference, officials clarified that her name is Malayshia Alford.The investigation remains open, and police ask anyone with information about the case to come forward. Malayshia was only 10 years old.
