Update (1:15 p.m.):
Update (11:00 a.m.):
SEARCY, AR – “Right now, we have the best organized effort possible,” said Searcy Police Chief Jeremy Clark in an afternoon news conference from the Searcy Police Department about the search for 2-year-old Malik Drummond.
Chief Clark told reporters the child was reported missing at 6:30 Sunday night after having last been seen around 5:45. He was wearing a blue shirt and brown pants with a stripe on them.
The child was in the home of his biological father and stepmother, Clark said.
He said neighbors started helping look for the boy immediately and after officers arrived, his name and photo were entered into a national database for missing children.
A search went on throughout the night. A missing children’s group used bloodhounds for four hours looking for Malik with no success.
The chief said creeks in the area of the child’s home have been searched and there are no other bodies of water near there.
He said the FBI is one of several agencies assisting the Searcy Police Department with this case.
The command center for the search was moved late Monday morning from the SPD to St. Mary Church.
Chief Clark said there were “more volunteers than I could count” when the search got under way. He said he had “never seen so many people come out than we had last night,” calling it a “tremendous outpouring.”
Investigators are working to develop any information that could lead to finding the child. When asked by reporters if foul play could be possible, Chief Clark said all avenues are being explored.
He said there have been “many phone calls from Searcy and beyond” offering assistance for the search. He says most of those calls have been from people offering ideas for the search.
If anyone has information they are asked to call the SPD non-emergency line at (501) 268-3531.
Update (11:00 a.m.):
SEARCY, AR – Volunteers are now joining the search for a missing Searcy boy.
They’re joining police, firefighters, neighbors, friends, and family members who’ve been search since Sunday night for 2-year-old Malik Drummond.
Original story (2:00 a.m.):
SEARCY, AR — A Morgan Nick Amber Alert Level 2 was issued overnight for 2-year-old Malik Drummond.
State Police say Malik is autistic and was last known to be in his bedroom. He was last seen wearing Blue shirt and brown pants with stripes.
Police say the little boy walked away from his Searcy home on the 700 block of West Park Avenue around 6:30 Sunday night.
John Clifton, the boy’s uncle, says he was out of town when he heard the news.
“Everybody’s in distress,” Clifton said, “We don’t know what’s going on. Everybody’s minds run crazy when you can’t find a kid. You think the worst.”
Clifton says it’s unusual for Malik to wander away.
“He likes to play and he kind of whines when he talks but I can’t see him just hiding anywhere,” Clifton said, “Somebody had to get him for him to be gone this long.”
Clifton expressed gratitude toward members of the community who spent much of Sunday evening searching for the missing 2-year-old.
Please call 911 or the Searcy Police Department immediately if you see the child or think you might have information about where he is.