Authorities believe 2-year-old Jada Justice likely had been killed and encased in concrete in shallow water for three days in LaPorte County by the time she was falsely reported missing, The Times of Northwest Indiana reports this morning.
A child's body recovered in western LaPorte County is believed to be that of the missing 2-year-old, police said Thursday evening.
While the coroner has not yet confirmed whether the body is Jada's, sources told the NWI Times that it is her's.
"We feel very comfortable that we do in fact have Jada Justice," an officer said at a Thursday evening news conference, but he went on to clarify that the coroner has not been able to confirm if the body is hers.
The discovery is a grim end to an intense search that reached into its second week and drew countless volunteers who distributed thousands of fliers bearing photos of the missing girl, the paper reported.
The body was found just off U.S. 421 and Snyder Road, near Otis, Ind. An autopsy is scheduled for Friday around 8 a.m.
Police said the investigation has shifted from a missing persons to a murder investigation.
Charges are expected to be filed today against Jada's 18-year-old baby-sitter, Engelica Castillo, and Castillo's boyfriend, Tim Tkachik, sources with knowledge of the case said. The two were arrested Wednesday night and are being held in Lake County.
Jada was reported missing by Castillo on June 16. Police said Castillo seemed to be under the influence of some substance when she talked with police. Police have also said Castillo and her boyfriend have not been cooperative in the investigation.
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Jada's mother, Melissa Swiontek, said she dropped her daughter off with Castillo on June 8, having planned to travel out of town. Swiontek said she last spoke to her daughter June 12.
The next day, Jada -- placed in a plastic bin in which concrete was poured -- was dumped into a shallow waterway near the small LaPorte County town, according to a source close to the case.
The FBI has been involved in the investigation, but on Thursday was referring all requests for information to the Lake County, Ind., prosecutor's office.
