Missing 4-Year-Old Boy Found Dead In His Toy Chest

The investigation into the death of a missing toddler in Hurricane City, Utah concluded his death as accidental. The child had gone missing from his crib after his family put him to bed. A search by the family, neighbors and police led to the discovery of his corpse. The child had managed to get trapped inside his toy chest where he reportedly died of asphyxiation.

Four-year-old Kache Wallis was put to bed on Saturday, July 24 night by his grandmother. His family, including his parents, were at home the night of the incident. The next morning the grandmother, who has not been named, went to check on the child. She found that the child was not in his bed. She searched for him in the home before alerting the rest of the family.

Family and friends joined the search for the missing toddler. They searched the house as well as the surrounding area. When they failed to find the child, they decided to inform the police. Police started the search at the child’s home. As he could not be located in the home they expanded the search to the community, The Daily Mail reported.

The search in the neighborhood proved fruitless. The Independent reported that the police questioned the child’s mother, who is the non-custodial parent, about the child’s whereabouts. It was determined that she was unaware of where the child was. A third search of the family’s home was conducted by the police on Sunday, July 25 evening. During this search, the child’s body was discovered in his toy chest that was in the toddler’s room.

Utah Medical Examiner's Office investigated the child’s death. On Wednesday, July 28 it was announced that the child died due to "positional asphyxiation."

It is believed that at night after the child had been left alone in the room he had climbed out of bed. Wallis somehow managed to climb into the chest of toys. At some point, the lid dropped down and trapped the child inside. The toddler was unable to lift the lid to free himself leading to him suffocating inside the box.

In a statement by the Hurricane City Police, the child’s death was confirmed as accidental.