Oklahoma authorities have recovered the body of a child while searching for the missing Athena Brownfield in rural Grady County outside of Rush Springs.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) said in a news release Tuesday night that it could not confirm the remains are those of Athena, the four-year-old girl who was reported missing a week ago.
The remains will be transported to the Medical Examiner’s Office in Oklahoma City for positive identification, authorities said.
Athena was first reported missing on January 10 after a postman found her five-year-old sister alone outside their home on West Nebraska Avenue in Cyril. The postal worker called the police, who launched a search for Athena.
Earlier today, newly released court documents revealed that her carer, Alysia Adams, 31, told investigators Athena was beaten to death by her estranged husband Ivon Adams, 36, at Christmas and that he buried her body in a property in Rush Springs where they used to live.
Ivon Adams, 36, (left) is said to have beaten Athena to death and buried her body, according to his estranged wife Alysia Adams, 31, (right), who told investigators it happened over Christmas
The Oklahoma Bureau of Investigations continues to search for the remains of Athena Brownfield, 4, who was reported missing on January 10 but was allegedly killed around Christmas
Alysia, who is related to the girls, reportedly told OSBI investigators that around midnight on Christmas Day, she allegedly put the child on the floor and hit her three times. According to the documents, she did not move after that.
She said Ivon beat the little girl to death around midnight on Christmas Day and held her up by the arms, court documents revealed, according to KSWO.
According to the document, the child was not moving and her eyes were barely open. He then laid her on the ground and punched her in the chest at least three more times, Alysia reportedly told investigators on January 12.
Ivon then left the home on West Nebraska Avenue with the child’s body around 1 a.m. on December 26.
When Ivon returned home, he allegedly told Alysia he buried Athena near a fence line that was next to her old residence in Rush Springs, Oklahoma, court documents revealed. He added that he placed a large broken branch over the grave.
Phone records reportedly showed Ivon leaving home at around 4:15 a.m. and traveling to Rush Springs
Ivon was arrested in Arizona on Thursday and will be extradited to Oklahoma where he faces murder charges. Alysia was arrested the same day and faces two counts of child neglect.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol was seen searching for Athena in a body of water near her home
The child disappeared January 10 from this home in Cyril, Oklahoma, a small town 70 miles southwest of Oklahoma City
The court documents also revealed that Ivon and Alysia never took the girls to the doctor for a check-up and never enrolled them in school.
When questioned by authorities last week, Athena’s sister Adina had told them she had been home alone and was “tired of being alone”.
The sisters’ biological parents – who were not named – were interviewed by authorities and are cooperating with the investigation, OSBI said. Athena’s sister was taken into protective custody.
Volunteers and multiple law enforcement agencies were involved in the search, which included a helicopter, boats, all-terrain vehicles, a specially trained ground team, and a review of surveillance video from around Cyril.