Crime & Safety
Police Release New Details In 'Little Jacob' Case
Boy died before he went into the water, showed signs of neglect: Police
GALVESTON, TX — Galveston Police released autopsy results and new information on the case of a boy whose body was found on a Galveston beach in October.
Authorities who’ve dubbed the unknown child ‘Little Jacob,’ have had a mystery on their hands since that October day when beach goers walking along the Seawall found his body.
Police have searched for clues to his identity, posted his sketch on billboards all along the Gulf Coast, and are offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to his identity, but so far they are no closer to finding out who this child is or where he came from.
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Law enforcement officials theorize that the gamily could be here illegally, and fear making a report.
Other explanations could be that his family is still here and has told people that the boy went to live with relatives.
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Detectives working the case released a photo taken of the child after his body was recovered that bore a striking likeness to the sketch released in October, with signs of decomposition edited out.
Investigators said Tuesday they believe the child was in the water from 12 hours to two days and may have gone into the water several miles east of Galveston, possibly near the Houston Ship Channel or East Beach.
While police still don't know who he is, they do know that 'Little Jacob' showed signs of neglect and barely weighed 30 pounds when he died.
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They also know that 'Little Jacob' didn't drown in the Gulf of Mexico, and was either killed or died and was put in the water.
"During the autopsy, the medical examiner didn't see any water in his lungs or water in his respiratory system that would have been consistent with a drowning," said Galveston Police Detective Jeff Banks.
Little Jacob is believed to be between 3 to 4-years old, with dark hair and brown eyes.
However, police still don't know how the child died.
"There was nothing that was obviously a fatal injury. There's no sickness we are seeing that would be consistent with causing a fatality," Banks said. "This is gonna take us figuring out who he is and getting a timeline of what happened to him before his death..."
Image: Galveston PD/FBI
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