A mother who publicly begged for help when her 10-year-old son went missing has been charged after his body was found buried in a shallow grave, according to police.
Jayden Spicer’s remains were recovered in a “heavily wooded area” of rural Breathitt County, Kentucky, on Tuesday afternoon — six days after he was reported missing, according to Kentucky State Police.
The boy’s mom, 33-year-old Felicia Gross of Jackson, was arrested and charged with manslaughter, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and falsely reporting an incident, trooper Matt Gayheart told reporters.
Gross had earlier provided a handwritten statement to the media begging for help — which investigators believe was penned when she already knew what had happened to the boy, Fox 56 reported.
“We love Jayden and we want him safe at home please if anybody see [sic] my son Jayden Spicer please report it to the Jackson police department,” the mom had scrawled last Thursday, five days before the body was found.
“Thank you we love him very much please do the right thing call the police please pray for us and my son Jayden thank you.”
Police were initially told that Jayden went to bed the night of Tuesday, Aug. 5 — but couldn’t be found the next morning, according to WKYT.
The disappearance sparked days of searching in the area around the boy’s home until investigators received a new tip Monday night that led them to Jayden’s body, police said.
The boy’s remains were sent to the state Medical Examiner’s Office in Frankfort for an autopsy, officials said.
Gayheart said no additional information is being released at this time as police continue to investigate.
Gross, who previously served one year in jail for endangering the welfare of a minor, is being held at the Kentucky River Regional Jail, according to Lex 18.
