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The mysterious death of a 15-year-old black youth whose body was found in a sugarcane field in rural Louisiana four days after his parents reported his disappearance to local police has prompted calls for an independent investigation.
Among the things his family want to know is why an Amber Alert was not issued and why the boy’s face appeared mutilated when his body was found.
The body of Quawan “Bobby” Charles was found in a sugarcane field on November 3 near the village of Loreauville, about 20 miles from his father’s house in Baldwin. Charles disappeared from the house on October 30. The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating the “suspicious circumstances” of the teenager’s death, but released some details.
A preliminary autopsy report obtained by NBC News lists the cause of death as “probable drowning” and says Charles had “muddy water” in his airways, “hyper swollen lungs” and water in his sphenoid sinuses. He also states that Charles had no pre-death wounds on his face and that “the post-mortem wounds on the face are likely aquatic animal activity” from his discovery in the water.
But Ronald Haley Jr., an attorney for Charles’ family, said in an interview on Friday that it was unlikely the boy could have drowned because the water is shallow where his body was found. The family are considering requesting an independent autopsy, Haley said.
The teenager’s mother, Roxanne Nelson, had tried to reach her son on her cell phone on October 30 because she planned to take him for a haircut, Haley said.
After her calls went unanswered, she contacted Charles’ father Kenneth Jacko, who tried to enter her room, but the door was locked. Jacko was finally able to access the room but could not find Charles. So he and Nelson went to the Baldwin Police Department, where a report was taken, Haley said.
It is unclear what action the local police took after the report was filed. The Baldwin Police Department could not be reached for comment.
In a statement to The Acadiana Advocate newspaper, Deputy Police Chief Baldwin Samuel Wise III said the ministry “was not investigating the death of a body found in Loreauville, Iberia Parish.”
“However, the Baldwin Police Department will investigate the reasons why the deceased minor was missing from his residence in Baldwin,” Wise wrote in the emailed statement. “Proper protocol was used to report the minor as missing and all procedures were followed in Baldwin’s jurisdiction.”
Charles’s parents are distraught and did not wish to be questioned on Friday, Haley said, adding that they had given him permission to speak on their behalf.
Parents said a teenage friend and his mother picked up Charles around 3 p.m. the day he went missing and took him to their home in Loreauville while his father was in a store, Haley said. Charles’ parents said they did not know the family and did not give them permission to take him, Haley said.
The teenager’s parents said sheriff’s deputies accompanied them to the friend’s home on November 3 – before his body was found – and that authorities searched the house but found nothing suspicious , according to Haley.
Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Katherine Breaux said Friday MPs visited a house in Loreauville but declined to say where.
Breaux declined to say whether investigators interviewed the family or searched their home. She also declined to say if there were any suspects.
Charles’s parents, the Louisiana NAACP and the state’s American Civil Liberties Union section are calling for an independent investigation. Haley said he didn’t think the family’s concerns were taken seriously by the Baldwin Police Department and that it was helpful to question whether race played a role in their response. They claim that the police did not use all their resources to locate the teenager.
His family has circulated a gruesome photograph of his mutilated face to gain media attention. The photograph evokes the image of the corpse of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old boy who was murdered in Mississippi in 1955.
Louisiana State Police spokesman Lt. Nick Manale said on Friday the agency “had not been contacted with reference to the missing person and was not currently part of the ongoing investigation “.
“We have seen nationwide collective indifference to the value of a black life,” Haley said. “It is something that has been brought to the forefront of national consciousness this year starting with the murder of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery.”
“So when you talk about this thing called systemic bias or racism in law enforcement,” he added, “it’s not just about being arrested and beaten. It’s situations like this. . He’s a missing child. “
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