NY Endangered Missing Child: Marc Anthony Bookal
12.28.09: Reward Fund Tops $26K
Original Post: December 15, 2009Updates | Latest Update: 01.16.10Sources
The story is so familiar it is becoming very tiring. Mother has small child and live-in boyfriend. Boyfriend is not the biological father of the child. Mother leaves her child in the care of the boyfriend. Child is reported missing. Boyfriend is taken into custody and charged with misdemeanor child endangerment and a parole violation. Mother speaks to the media and is pretty much not wanting to discuss those “nasty rumors” 
circulating about her son’s hands being burned two months ago while he was in the care of the boyfriend. She just wants everyone to focus on finding her little boy.
As I said in the previous paragraph, this scenario is becoming far too commonplace and the outcomes are usually tragic.
Marc Anthony Bookal, 4, was last seen inside his Newburgh City, New York apartment by his mother’s boyfriend, Cory Byrd, 30. Cory told police he was getting the child ready to go visit relatives at about 1 p.m. on Monday December 14. He then noticed the front door to the apartment was open and Marc was no where to be found. He checked at a neighbor’s home where Marc liked to play, but he was not there. It has not been reported in the media who called authorities to report Marc’s disappearance, how long it took between the discovered disappearance and the reporting of the disappearance, or where Marc’s mother was while he was in the care of Cory Byrd.
Police checked the area block by block. They say there were no sightings of the 4-year-old walking down the street by himself. There have been no sightings of a 4-year-old walking around by himself in the middle of the night last night either.
Today, police arrested Cory Byrd and charged him with child endangerment, a misdemeanor, for allowing him to wander outside by himself. They also charged him with a parole violation. I have been covering stories about missing and murdered children for quite a few years now and I cannot recall one time when a caretaker or parent was taken into custody for child endangerment when their child disappeared from inside the house “for allowing the child to wander off”. Maybe authorities have good reason to put him behind bars based on his past history with children.
According to an article published in August 1998, Cory Byrd was jailed after he was charged with seriously harming his 1-year-old son. The injuries to 1-year-old Christian Caston included the following:
“…a fractured skull, several broken ribs, a broken wrist and a perforated liver,…” 1
Just like Marc’s injuries two months ago and his current disappearance, at the time of Christian’s injuries there was no one else caring for the child except for Cory Byrd. Bryd served several years in prison for the assault on his son and on other charges and was recently paroled in April of this year.
I wonder why Marc’s mother allowed her boyfriend to remain in the home, let alone babysit her son given the fact Marc sustained burns to his hands just two months ago while in the care of Cory Byrd and given his criminal history. Police have asked her to come down to headquarters for further questioning; however, she says she isn’t going anywhere until she finds her son. She wants police to stop thinking of her boyfriend as a suspect and look for her son. I wonder when she will get a clue.
Journalists are taught to be objective when reporting about a story. They usually tread carefully when describing situations that have happened where children have been abused. Having said that, I was surprised to read the following in a story written by Times Herald-Record reporter Michael Randall regarding Byrd’s past conviction:
Ten years ago, Byrd was convicted of first-degree reckless endangerment, a felony, and sentenced to 1 1/3 to four years in prison for beating up another of Bookal’s sons, who was 14 months old at the time.
Child protective services is now investigating the disappearance to determine if there was neglect involved. It appears it is once again a case of too little too late.
It is the season for miracles. Maybe Marc did wander off.
Marc Anthony Bookal
Marc is a 4-year-old Black male with light skin. He is 3′5″ tall and weighs approximately 45 pounds. Marc has a medium-length brown Afro and brown eyes. When last seen he was wearing a red, long-sleeved shirt, white Nike sneakers, and gray sweatpants. He is not wearing a jacket.
Anyone with information is urged to call Newburgh City Police Department at (845) 561-3131
December 16, 2009: 3 p.m. PST
It is really to say but Marc has not been located. Today authorities are focusing their search on the city’s waterfront and have expanded the water search to include the Hudson River. They are also searching along the railroad tracks. To me, it sounds as if they are looking for his body. As I said previously, Marc’s mother should get a clue, go into that jail, and knock Cory Byrd upside his sorry head and demand he tell her where he put her son’s body. Of course, she is not ready to get a clue.
December 17, 2009: 1:20 p.m. PST
According to RecordOnline.com, the press conference planned by police for this afternoon in front of Marc Bookal’s home has been unexpectedly canceled. No reason was given for the change in plans.
December 17, 2009: 6:30 p.m. PST
I think this picture says it all about how desolate the search for Marc is becoming in the fourth day. It is such a vast body of water, if he is in the water his body will probably never be found. I read somewhere today the reason for searching the waterfront and the river is because the bloodhounds hit on a scent.
The media has not mentioned police interviewing area sex offenders and I am not sure why that has not been mentioned or if it has or has not been done. A search of the New York state Sex Offender Registry for zip code 12550 revealed several registered sex offenders. The law only allows for Level 2 and Level 3 sex offenders to appear on the public registry because they are deemed the most likely to reoffend and pose more of a danger to the community.
It appears that most of the registered sex offenders live together in various addresses within that zip code. I am guessing that the majority are being housed in area motels. What is troubling is there are two registered sex offenders living on Marc Bookal’s street.
“A” indicates Marc’s address at 11 Benkard Avenue. “B” indicates a registered sex offender living across the street from Marc’s home. MapQuest said it takes 3 seconds to get from point “A” to point “B” and that is driving directions. “B” is a Level 3 sex offender. “C” indicates the other registered sex offender living on Marc’s street. He is a Level 2 sex offender. I hope police have questioned these two sex offenders living so closely to the location of Marc’s disappearance. I am not going to give the addresses or names of these sex offenders because they have not even been questioned. I am only mentioning them for the reasons stated above – have the police checked them out?
December 18, 2009: 5:30 p.m. PST
Marc is still missing and the search is still ongoing with the addition of search and recovery dogs from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Cory Byrd is still in jail. When he was arrested on Monday he asked for an attorney during questioning so police have not been able to question him since that time. Today, they asked him to take a polygraph examination and authorities are waiting for an answer from his attorney regarding taking that exam. I wonder if Christina has asked Byrd why he needs a lawyer.
If I believed Byrd’s story about Marc wandering away from home, and if, Marc got lost most likely he succumbed to the elements or dehydration on Monday night. Marc was not wearing a coat when he disappeared and now there is a winter storm watch in effect for this weekend. I really don’t believe Byrd’s story.
December 19, 2009: 2:45 p.m. PST
Police announced today during a news conference that an anonymous donor has offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the safe return of Marc Bookal. Police also stated that due to the impending snow storm, expected this evening, the search for Marc will be suspended until Monday. They have made an extra effort to search in the area around Marc’s home and the surrounding neighborhood today. They also asked people in the area to be aware of anything that seems out of place around their homes and report it to police.
December 21, 2009: 4:45 p.m. PST
Marc is still missing. Police reported today that Marc’s mother, Christina Bookal and his biological father, Yul Bookal, have both taken polygraph examinations. Police did not mention the results of those tests. They are still waiting for an answer from Cody Byrd’s attorney for the request made earlier in the week for his client to agree to submit to a polygraph examination and further questioning.
Meanwhile, the reward fund has grown to $16,000. Another anonymous donor added $5,000 to the pot and the organization Carlie’s Crusade Foundation is offering an additional $1,000. Authorities are also seeking more leads including anyone having video surveillance footage in the Southeast corner of the city. Police want to review that video. If you would like to make a donation to the reward fund you can contact police. To make a donation to the Carlie’s Crusade reward contact their website Carlie’s Crusade Foundation or call them at (800)496-6720 or 309-2961.
I haven’t seen the plea in the media yet by Christina Bookal to the person who has her son to please bring him home. However, his father did make that plea early on. All I have seen from Christina is a plea for the police to stop looking at her boyfriend as a suspect and to start looking for her son.
December 22, 2009: 10:30 a.m. PST
Police revealed today that Marc’s biological parents both appeared truthful in their responses on the polygraph exams. Police also revealed today that Cody Byrd declined through his attorney to submit to a polygraph exam. I can say that this is no surprise to me. Of course he has the right to refuse the exam and in most states the results are not admissible in court; however, if he has nothing to hide and if it would help clear him of any involvement in Marc’s disappearance, why not take the exam? There is only one reason I can think of that he would refuse to take the polygraph and that is he has something to hide. I am not saying he is guilty of doing something to Marc, I am just saying he must have something to hide.
It was also announced today that the Carlie’s Crusade Foundation has changed the terms of their $1,000 reward offer. Originally it was offered for information leading to Marc’s safe return. Now they have changed the terms to any information leading to Marc’s location no matter the outcome. Police too, are becoming less hopeful of finding Marc alive. It has been 8 days.
December 28, 2009: 3 p.m. PST
Mark is still missing and his mother is still criticizing the police investigation into his disappearance. She is upset because they will not share with her where they are searching or what leads they are following. Christine also is of the opinion that police were not as thorough from the beginning as they should have been:
“If it were one of theirs, they’d have the whole … town flipped upside down,” she said.2
I have my own opinion about Christine. She does not mention whether she went to visit her boyfriend in jail to ask him to please take the polygraph examination he has refused to take. She does not mention whether she asked her boyfriend why he won’t submit to the polygraph exam.
I admit, I do not live in Newburgh. However, the news coverage has shown a tireless search for Mark by police officers in terrible weather conditions. It would be nice if Christine showed just a bit of gratitude for the effort being made to find her son, the son she left in the care of a convicted child abuser. She is not the victim.
January 8, 2010: 3 p.m. PST
Just days after police announced the end of their ground search for Marc Bookal and one day after it was announced that Cory Byrd hired a high-profile attorney to defend him, police resumed the ground search. They said they received new information and are concentrating their search in the area of Marc Bookal’s street. The search included a vacant elementary school and some other buildings in the area and is expected to continue through Saturday.
Cory Byrd’s new attorney, Gary Greenwald, told the media that there is more to the disappearance than what the public knows. Spoken like a true defense attorney, Greenwald gave the following explanation regarding his new client’s refusal to submit to a lie detector test:
“The people who are observing this case don’t know the circumstances of how that was asked of him,” Greenwald said of the polygraph test.
He declined to detail those circumstances in advance of his client’s court appearances but said people should keep an open mind until the facts come out. 3
The first thought that came into my mind when I read the above quote was the police either did not say “Would you please take a polygraph exam?” or they didn’t smile when asking Byrd to take the test. Of course I am being sarcastic.
I wonder who is paying for this attorney Greenwald’s services. He has his own law firm with several offices and was a former mayor. He is replacing Byrd’s legal aid attorney. Since one has to qualify for legal aid service by showing a lack of income or low income, it makes me wonder how Byrd can now afford a private attorney.
January 16, 2010
Cory Byrd appeared in court with his attorney yesterday. There was no discussion regarding the charges for which he is currently being held – endangering the welfare of a child and his parole violation. Instead, his attorney produced a demand for information from the prosecution detailing a list of items they want access to which the prosecution declined to turn over. Among the items Byrd’s attorney wants access to are search warrants, results of urine samples and a copy of the arrest report. The prosecution said they will submit in writing to the court on Tuesday their reasons for denying the demands. The prosecution is also considering taking the case against Byrd to a Grand Jury. I am thinking they are seeking to indict Byrd on murder charges. The judge said he will rule on the demand January 25.
Of course Christina Bookal was in court to support her man. I only say that because of what she said to the press after the court hearing:
But Christina Bookal, who remains convinced the boy is still alive, said after attending Byrd’s court appearance that she’s not satisfied that all possible steps are being taken. She continued to criticize police for focusing on Byrd.
“I’m quite sure there are plenty of people who saw something,” she said. “My 4-year-old is out there somewhere. Bring my son home.”4
No, Christina, Cory needs to tell what happened to Marc.
Stepfather of Missing Newburgh Boy Marc Anthony Bookal Arrested, Charged with Letting Boy Wander, WPIX.com, Last Accessed: December 15, 2009.
New York State Department of Correctional Services, Last Accessed: December 15, 2009.
Michael Randall, Police Searching Newburgh Waterfront, River for Missing Boy, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 16, 2009.
Video: Search Efforts Along the Hudson River for Missing Boy, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 16, 2009.
The Search for Marc Bookal, RecordOnline – Times Herald-Record, Last Accessed: December 18, 2009.
Michael Randall, Newburgh Police Want Mother’s Boyfriend in Missing Boy Case to take Polygraph Test, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 18, 2009.
Paul Brooks, Reward for Missing Boy Rises to $16,000, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 21, 2009.
Doyle Murphy, Reward Acknowledges Possibility of Grim Outcome, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 22, 2009.
Michael Randall, Police Resume Ground Search for Missing 4-Year-Old, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: January 8, 2010.
- Heather Yakin, Baby is Critical; Father Charged, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 16, 2009. [↩]
- Doyle Murphy, Missing Newburgh Boy’s Mom Wants More Info, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: December 29, 2009. [↩]
- Doyle Murphy, Greenwald to Defend Boyfriend of Missing Boy’s Mom, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: January 8, 2010. [↩]
- Michael Randall, Defense Demands Evidence in Newburgh’s Missing Child Case, RecordOnline.com, Last Accessed: January 16, 2010. [↩]
NC Amber Alert – Harmony Jade Creech
11.11.09: Prosecutors will seek the death penalty against Heuser.
Original PostUpdated: 11.11.09Sources
There are some stories that come out about missing children that I hesitate to blog about because I can almost feel the outcome is going to be bad. I read the story last night about missing 11-month-old Harmony Creech last night. There wasn’t much information available at that time so I decided to wait.
I read another article this afternoon and I discussed the story with a friend.
Below is what was told to police:
“…Harmony was last seen in her crib in the family’s Spring Lake home, at 1680 Ray Road, around 11 p.m. Thursday. Investigators said Harmony’s mother, Johni Michelle Heuser, claimed to be the last one to see the child after putting her to bed Thursday night.(…)”
“…A pink bed sheet, a few bibs and most of her clothing were also taken, authorities said.(…)”
“…Harnett County Sheriff Larry Rollins said the window in the baby’s room was open. The screen had been removed and was sitting outside of the house…”
The father of the missing child has been deployed to Iraq and was not in the country when Harmony was born. However, he flew into the country on Friday morning and Harmony’s grandmother picked him up at the airport, leaving a sleeping Harmony and the mother behind with her other 3 children.
When I read this account things just did not ring true. The first thing that did not ring true was not bringing this returning soldier’s new baby to the airport to greet her new father. The second thing not ringing true was the grandmother picking him up at the airport.
The last thing that did not ring true was the baby was not discovered missing until approximately 11:00 a.m. after the grandmother and father returned from the airport. Having been a mother I know children just do not sleep in until almost noon at 11 months of age.
So I discussed my misgivings with my friend. She was quick to ask me why I thought the child was dead. What could be the reason for someone killing a baby? Well, my response was of all of the babies and children I have heard of being murdered by someone, there never has been a good reason for the murder – there never can be a good reason to murder a child.
So I just checked for new developments in the story. Harmony’s body was located this afternoon in the attic of the home where she lived. Apparently she has been dead for several weeks. I suppose they needed to come up with a story to explain to the father why his daughter was not there to greet him at the airport.1
There have been no arrests made at this time. The baby’s mother, Johni Michelle Heuser, told police she discovered Harmony’s deceased body in her crib a few weeks ago and concealed the death out of fear. An autopsy will determine if there was anything the mother should have been fearful about regarding the death of her baby.
I will continue to update this story.
That poor little baby. If she did die of natural causes she deserved to have a decent burial — not stuck up in an attack like an unwanted doll.
After several hours of questioning regarding the death of her 11-month-old daughter Harmony, Johni Michelle Heuser was charged with first-degree murder. She is being housed at the Harnett County Detention Center on a no bond hold.
An autopsy is scheduled to determine the cause of death. Johni told authorities that she found her daughter dead in her crib a few weeks ago and decided to hide the body and the death because she was afraid. News accounts do not elaborate on the cause of that fear.2
September 4, 2008
October 20th will mark the 1 year anniversary of Harmony Jade Creech’s alleged murder at the hands of her mother. At least that will mark the anniversary of the discovery of her badly decomposed body. Harmony’s mother has yet to be indicted for the crime.
In case you don’t recall Hueser reportedly discovered her baby dead in the crib several weeks prior to reporting her missing. Instead of calling authorites on the day of the discovery Hueser decided to place her dead baby in a plastic bag, place that inside a diaper box and put the box up in the corner of the attic.
She then waited until the day the baby’s father was returning from a tour of duty in Iraq to report the baby missing which prompted the activation of a statewide Amber Alert.
What a piece of work.
In January of this year authorities were awaiting test results from Harmony’s skeletal remains that had been sent to a Texas lab for analysis. Then on March 11 it was reported that the autopsy discovered nicotine in Harmony’s body and there was no way to figure out how that happened.3
On March 18 it was determined that the cause of death was inconclusive. Other tests are being conducted and the investigation is ongoing.4
November 11, 2009
Prosecutors have decided to seek the death penalty in the first-degree murder case of Johni Heuser. It has been difficult for investigators to determine exactly how Harmony Creech died in 2007. What they have determined after having Harmony’s remains examined by an anthropologist is that Harmony was starved to death.
Harmony’s remains were found in the attic of her mother’s home on Oct. 20, 2007. Investigators believe Harmony died sometime between August 31, 2007, September 30, 2007.
Death Penalty Sought Against Mother in Toddler’s Death, WRAL.com, Last Accessed: November 11, 2009.
- Missing Harnett County Baby Found Dead in Attic, WRAL.com. [↩]
- Mom Charged with Murder After Baby Found Dead, WRAL.com. [↩]
- Autopsy Finds Nicotine in 11-month-old’s Remains, WRAL.com, March 11, 2008. [↩]
- Infant’s Cause of Death Remains Under Investigation, WRAL.com, March 18, 2008. [↩]
Aaroné Thompson Dead?
11.11.09: Aaron Thompson sentenced to 114 years. Read about it at
That night Aaroné did not return home during that bitterly cold night. I believe the temperature dropped to 12 degrees. She did not return home on Tuesday, or Wednesday. It snowed Tuesday night. Police called off the search for Aaroné today saying that they had searched every place a child that young could have gone. Aaroné is only six-years-old. When police began searching on Monday afternoon they made comments to the media indicating that the family was not being too cooperative with the search. They were reluctant to discuss what problems they were having with the family because they felt the investigation might turn into one of a criminal nature later on and they did not want to jeopardize the investigation. One thing police did mention was that they were unable to obtain a recent photo of the girl; the only photo provided to law enforcement was 1 1/2 years old. That is the photo at the top of this blog entry. Police believe the girl has been dead for at least 1 1/2 years and the request for help for her recent disappearance was fabricated. Search warrants have been served on the home and the father and the live-in girlfriend are being looked at as ‘persons of interest’ in the death of six-year-old Aaroné. Seven other children live in the home. They have been removed from their home and placed in protective custody with Child Protective Services. The family is upset with how they have been treated. They feel that they have been treated unfairly and have hired a family friend to be their spokesperson. They are considering hiring an attorney. I believe it may be a good idea to get an attorney at this point, but not for the reasons they want to hire an attorney. Other information learned during the investigation was that the girl did not attend school. Her mother lives in a woman’s shelter in Michigan. She told reporters she could not afford the cost of travel to come and look for her daughter. Perhaps they are innocent of any wrong-doing. In my last blog entry I wrote of how we have had at least one child murdered each month this year in the United States. So far, if Aaroné was murdered this month instead of a few years ago then that will be a total of two murdered children for the month of November. I wonder when will it end, the slaughtering of our children. The police are pretty confident that Aaroné Thompson was murdered in her home at least 1 1/2 years ago. They cite some interesting reasons; there were no pictures of Aaroné in the home older than 4 1/2 years and she had never been enrolled in school. It is as if she had fallen off of the face of the earth. They also received a tip from someone close to the family indicating that Aaroné most likely is deceased and has been for some time. According to law enforcement officials, interviews conducted with the children indicate they have acknowledged that Aaroné has been gone from the home for a considerable length of time. If this is true, Aaroné was not the only victim. It is a horrible thought that these children have had to keep that secret. I wonder what the effects on their psyches will be in the years to come. Thus far Aaroné’s father and his live-in girlfriend have not cooperated with the investigation. Time will tell if Aaroné was murdered or if she in fact walked out her door on Monday, November 14, 2005 never to be seen again. Much has happened over the past few years with this case. Aaron Thompson and his live-in girlfriend Shelly lost permanent custody of their children. Shelly died sometime last year from a heart condition. Aaron was indicted earlier this year and will stand trial November 3, 2008. It is interesting because the deceased former live-in girlfriend was also named in the indictment. I will be covering this trial on my other blog, The End of the Story.
Aaroné Thompson was reported missing Monday afternoon from her home in Aurora, Colorado by her father Aaron Thompson. He told police that there was some sort of disagreement about discipline and she walked out of the house. I don’t recall reading information about how long she was gone before her father went to look for her, but he claims he searched for her and then called police.I am trying to understand why a parent who had murdered a child would report that child as missing 1 1/2 years after the fact. It would seem to me that a secret like that kept for so long would be kept as a secret and taken to the grave.
Again, I wonder why someone would fabricate a story of a missing child for one that they knew was murdered. The only excuse I have come up with that is logical to me is that someone was coming to visit the family. Aaroné’s birthday was approaching on November 30th. Perhaps this person, a relative was particularly interested in seeing Aaroné. There was no way of getting around her not being there unless she was reported missing, possibly a victim of a kidnapping. This would bring sympathy for the family and it would also get them off the hook as being involved in their child’s murder; at least for a while until they could dispose of the body in a remote location. Could the murderer be that ignorant to the fact that law enforcement, once finding the remains would be able to pinpoint just how long she had been deceased?
