EFFINGHAM COUNTY, Ga. – Investigators in Georgia are trying to piece together an incident in which they say the remains of two children who went missing were found buried in their father's backyard.
Elwyn Crocker Jr. was 14 when he was last seen two years ago, according to police. His 14-year-old sister, Mary, was last seen in October. Neither child was reported missing to authorities.
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Both of the siblings' remains were discovered in the backyard of their father's home in the farming town of Guyton on Thursday, police said.
The Effingham County Sheriff's office said deputies were dispatched to the home about 10 p.m. Thursday for a welfare check. The office said they had received a tip the night before about a missing 14-year-old girl who was feared to be deceased.
Adult family members at the home told deputies that the girl, Mary, had gone to live with her mother in South Carolina, but investigators determined that they were giving conflicting information.
The sheriff's office conducted a search of the grounds that uncovered the bodies of Elwyn Jr. and Mary buried in the backyard, according to the sheriff's office.
An autopsy was conducted to confirm the identities of the siblings. It also determined that Elwyn Jr. had been buried for 2 years, and his sister had been for several months.
Georgia authorities believe two bodies found buried behind an Effingham County home are those of teenage siblings Mary Crocker and Elwyn Crocker Jr. https://t.co/uPBO1wjBc6
— AJC (@ajc) December 22, 2018
Four adults at the home were arrested and charged, police said. A child who has special needs was found at the home and taken to the hospital for observation.
Elwyn Crocker Sr., 49, who is the children's biological father, was arrested along with 33-year-old step-mother Candice Crocker and 50-year-old step-grandmother Kim Wright. Wright's boyfriend, 55-year-old Roy Anthony Prater was also arrested. All four were charged with concealing the death of another and cruelty to children in the first degree. Prater is facing an additional drug possession charge.
Until recently, Elwyn Crocker Sr. played Santa at a nearby Walmart, reports WTOC.
“This guy, the biological father, was a Santa Claus at Rincon Walmart, and these other families who live out here had their kids in his lap," a neighbor told the news station.
Other neighbors who spoke with reporters said the children at the home never played with other kids and were doing yard work most of the time.
“People hear things. People see things," said Effingham County Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie. "Of course, all day today, people have been coming up to us, ‘Well, I saw this and I saw that,' but for whatever reason, they didn’t feel comfortable enough to call and let us know that."
The Effingham County School System released a statement saying that both children had been transferred to a homeschooling program:
Mary Crocker and Elwyn Crocker, Jr were both formerly enrolled in the Effingham County School System. Mary was last enrolled in our system during the 2017-2018 school year as a 6th-grade student at Effingham County Middle School. Elwyn, Jr was last enrolled through January 2014 as a 6th-grade student at South Effingham Middle School. The information on record indicates that both students transferred to a homeschool program at the time of withdrawal.
All four suspects have appeared in court and were denied bond. Police said more charges are forthcoming depending on the determination and manner of death.