Missing and Murdered Children

Original Post: September 26, 2008Last Updated: September 27, 2008View Sources

Yesterday the mother of 5-year-old Geontae Glass went into a convenience store and then reported that her car had been stolen with her son inside. Witnesses in the area had said they had seen a pickup truck drive up and a black male exit the pickup truck. He got into the mother’s vehicle and drive off. The driver of the pick up truck also drove off. The mother indicated to authorities that she had left her vehicle’s engine running when she went into the convenience store. ¹

Updates 

September 27, 2008

An Alabama Amber Alert that was issued yesterday has been canceled. The reported kidnapping was a hoax and police have arrested the mother and another male and have charged them with the death of the 5-year-old boy.

“…The body of Geontae Glass and the car that was reported stolen Monday morning were found Tuesday at a residence in Etowah County, Sheriff James Hayes said.
Shalinda Glass, 25, of Rainbow City, and Kevin Andre Towles, who is believed to own the house where the body was found, were being held, Hayes said…”²

Authorities have not yet determined the cause of death and it is not clear if the boy was already dead at the time of the reported abduction.

It is so hard to keep believing parents when they report a missing child when stories turn out this way. It is such an abuse of the Amber Alert system and law enforcement resources when parents use those resources to cover up a crime.

Sources 

Atlanta Journal Constitution.com

1. Car Left Running Stolen with Child Inside, WSMV.com, Last Accessed: September 26, 2008. [↩]
2. AJC.com [↩]

Original Post: June 27, 2008Last Updated: June 28, 2008View Sources

Treshon was last seen with his babysitter, 16-year-old Antoinetta Smith when she drove away from 3009 3^st Avenue North in Birmingham, Alabama. Antoinetta was babysitting Treshon when she left with the 1-year-old in the mother’s car. She did not have permission to drive the vehicle or leave with the baby. Originally this case was classified as a missing persons case. However, with the activation of the Amber Alert it has been upgraded to a child abduction case.¹

Victim: Treshon Williams

Treshon Williams is a 1-year-old Black male with black hair and brown eyes. He stands 2ft tall and weighs approximately 40 lbs. He was last seen wearing gray and orange Nikes.²

Suspect: Antoinetta Smith

Antoinetta Smith is a 16-year-old Black female with black hair and brown eyes. She stands 5’7″ tall and weighs approximately 165 lbs.

Suspect Vehicle

1997 Maroon 4-door Ford Crown Victoria with Alabama license plate 14127AN.

The two were last seen at approximately 10 p.m. on June 26, 2008.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Birmingham Police Department (Alabama) at 1-205-328-9311, 911 or 1-800-thelost.

Updates 

June 26, 2009: 6:30 p.m. PST

The Birmingham News is reporting the car in the Amber Alert was spotted this afternoon at a house on 48th Street in the Central Park area of the city. Police are currently conducting a foot search for the child and teen.³

June 28, 2008: 12:15 a.m. PST

The search for Treshon and Antoinetta in the Central Park area failed to find them. Shortly after 10p.m. police told reporters they were moving the search to Fairfield, but did not elaborate.⁴

June 28, 2008: 11:45 a.m. PST

About 7 p.m. last night police received a tip about the location of the subject vehicle of the Amber Alert. The vehicle was located in the vicinity of Tuscaloosa Avenue and then proceeded to follow it to a residence on Terrace R in Ensley.

When the vehicle was stopped neither Antoinetta Smith or Treshon Williams were inside. Instead a woman with two children were inside the vehicle. She is being questioned about her involvement in the disappearance.

It is believed Antoinetta was at the Terrace R location and fled on foot with Treshon, however, a four hour foot search of the area failed to find them.

According to Lt. Irby:

“By all indications, the 1-year-old is okay,” Irby said during an impromptu news conference Friday night on Terrace R. “At this time we hope Antoinette is looking at this story and that she calls the police department and/or the mother of Treshon. We need to get him back to his mom as quickly as possible because (Smith) is not equipped to take care of a 1-year-old at this time.”⁵

June 28, 2008: 8:15 p.m. PST

The two mothers of the missing children held a news conference this afternoon pleading for their safe return.

It is also Antoinetta Smith’s 17th birthday today. Her mother pleaded with her to bring the baby home:

“Is this how you want to spend your birthday?” cried Nakia Smith, Antoinetta’s mother. “We is waiting on you! You need to come home with that baby!”⁶

The Smith and Williams families are related; Antoinetta is Treshon’s cousin. According to Antoinetta’s family they say she may be telling people that Treshon is her son. After the press conference the family members went around passing out fliers.

June 28, 2008: 11 p.m. PST

Treshon Williams has been located and reunited with his mother in Bessemer. Antoinetta Smith is in police custody.⁷

June 28, 2008: 2:30 a.m. PST

ABC3340.com cameras captured an emotional reunion with Treshon and his mother a little after midnight in Bessemer.

According to the report, Antoinetta Williams showed up at what is being called a housing community in Bessemer on Saturday morning. She claimed Treshon was her child and they were supposed to go to a birthday party later that day. Another person who lived in the housing community, Erica, recognized Antoinetta as a former classmate. When she heard the Amber Alert on the radio she called police to alert them that Antoinetta was there. Before police arrived Antoinetta got into a car with an unknown male and attempted to flee the scene. However, police were able to stop the vehicle and take Antoinetta into custody.⁸

Sources 

1. “Update: Missing Persons Now Child Abduction Case, abc3340.com, Last Accessed: June 27, 2008. [↩]
2. “Amber Alert Treshon Williams, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Last Accessed: June 27, 2008. [↩]
3. Carol Robinson and Kristin Oberholzer, Updated: Police Hunt in Central Park Neighborhood for Teen and Toddler at Center of Amber Alert, The Birmingham News, June 27, 2008. [↩]
4. Ibid. [↩]
5. ABC.com [↩]
6. ABC.com [↩]
7. Treshon Williams Found, abc3340News.com, Last Accessed: June 28, 2008. [↩]
8. Ibid. [↩]