Maleah Davis Update: Remains Of Missing 4-Year-Old From Texas Found And Identified In Arkansas

Texas police and volunteers have worked diligently to locate missing 4-year-old Maleah Davis for nearly a month. Originally suspected to be a random group of men, suspicion soon fell on her mother’s boyfriend, Derion Vence. And police began to fear the worst had befallen Maleah as time went on.

And, unfortunately, the search has ended in tragic fashion.

Remains suspected to be Maleah’s were found in Arkansas on Friday. The remains were found off a freeway outside of Hope, Arkansas in a bag that had been dumped there. Search efforts were focused in the area after Vence reportedly confessed to a community activist of dumping her body in the area.

The activist in question was identified as Quanell X, who had visited Vence early Friday. And while Quanell hasn’t revealed any other details of his encounter with Vence, he claims that Vence insists Maleah’s death was “an accident.”

After discovering the body, the remains were flown back to Texas to undergo forensic tests at the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences. The remains were then subject to extensive testing, confirming the worst had befallen Maleah. A cause of death has yet to be identified, however.

“We remain focused on finding the truth and delivering justice for Maleah,” Harris County District Attorney's Office said in a statement Monday.

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo also said in his own statement Monday that the police and prosecutors would work to “ensure the person(s) responsible for her death, and the attempted cover-up of her death, are held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

Vence is still being held in Harris County Jail on charges of tampering with evidence.