IN IN- Hayden Ian lee Manis, 9, reported missing 4.5+ years later, Muncie

[ChatteringBirds]

Imagine how he felt being taken away from his loving grandpa.

And I can't believe there weren't required follow-up visits with social workers to see how things were going and required drug testing of the "father" to maintain custody.

Well, I believe it, but it's a disgrace.

 

[INfisherman]

the reason both parents lost custody when he was 1 year old was that they were found in a hotel room with heroin in open view and within reach of the little guy

Man I absolutely hate states that over emphasize (MOO) reunification. IMO Dustin should never had gotten his son back so easily and there should have been a longer and more frequent period of follow up, check ins after he did.

Little man might not be missing now had that reunification been handled differently.

Unfortunately, that’s the case many times. A lot of times it’s a judge or CPS making the call & on occasion a bleeding heart who wants to give the parents a second chance. Other times, there are just too many of which to keep track. At least that’s how it appears in the area where I am located. Rural areas with low per capital income are probably much worse off. And we’re just talking the traditional meth & opiates. Fentanyl is really digging in its claws in recent years & becoming a major cause of deaths.

 

[tlcya]

During an appearance last week on "Crime Stories with Nancy Grace," Delaware County Prosecutor Eric Hoffman acknowledged at least one witness indicated Hayden had been killed and that his body had been disposed of. However, Hoffman said that claim had not been verified.
Muncie Crime Stoppers offers $1,000 reward for info leading deputies to Hayden Manis

 

[tlcya]

 

[tlcya]

During an appearance last week on "Crime Stories with Nancy Grace," Delaware County Prosecutor Eric Hoffman acknowledged at least one witness indicated Hayden had been killed and that his body had been disposed of. However, Hoffman said that claim had not been verified.
Muncie Crime Stoppers offers $1,000 reward for info leading deputies to Hayden Manis

quoting myself here because I want to know what witness prosecutor is referring to and what specifically they said/know and how they know it and yet never reported it before now.

 

[friendlysleuther]

quoting myself here because I want to know what witness prosecutor is referring to and what specifically they said/know and how they know it and yet never reported it before now.

During an appearance last week on "Crime Stories with Nancy Grace," Delaware County Prosecutor Eric Hoffman acknowledged at least one witness indicated Hayden had been killed and that his body had been disposed of. However, Hoffman said that claim had not been verified.
Muncie Crime Stoppers offers $1,000 reward for info leading deputies to Hayden Manis

This link isn’t working for me,
I think this may be a similar if not the same article, however.

“
While detectives and the prosecutor are not releasing specific details of their ongoing investigation, the prosecutor said information gathered by investigators is very disturbing
.
“It’s haunting. It’s definitely haunting, some of the facts of this case,” responded Hoffman, who also told 13 Investigates he believes the missing boy is no longer alive.

“Based on the evidence I’ve seen and the interviews that have been conducted, I do not have a reason to believe that.”

Despite the grim outlook, investigators are still hoping for tips and information from the public, and the prosecutor pledged the investigation will continue.

“There are very few days I come to this office and I don’t think about Hayden Manis. This case is on my mind, and it’s on the investigators’ minds on a daily basis,” Hoffman said.

“We’re not going to stop until we get to an answer. We need to know the truth.”

“
Eric Hoffman, Prosecutor

 

[Lusitana]

I fear that what happened to Harmony Montgomery also happened to Hayden.

 

[tlcya]

I fear that what happened to Harmony Montgomery also happened to Hayden.

same. The likelihood of finding Hayden alive is miniscule. We all know how this is probably going to play out.

 

[mlhenn]

Hayden Ian Lee Manis – The Charley Project

Details of Disappearance​

Hayden's family last saw him at a gathering on Christmas Eve in 2019. Another witness reported seeing him on January 11, 2020. He has never been heard from again. He lived with his father, Dustin Gary Michael Manis, at the time of his disappearance, and Dustin never reported him missing.

Hayden had originally been removed from Dustin's care after a drug arrest in 2018 and placed with his paternal grandfather, Gary Manis. Hayden had a close relationship with his grandfather. A year and a half later, after Dustin completed probation and drug treatment, a judge ordered his son returned to his custody in spite of Gary's objections.

Dustin took Hayden to visit his grandfather, aunts, uncles and cousins regularly through 2018 and 2019. After Dustin and Gary had an argument, though, the visits got further apart, and stopped altogether after Christmas 2019. Hayden's family members kept texting him inviting him and Hayden to family events, but neither of them ever came.

In 2024, Hayden's two great-mothers realized that both sides of the family had been given different explanations as to what had happened to him. They spoke to Gary, who contacted the authorities and asked them to find Hayden and Dustin. The police were able to find only Dustin.

Dustin claimed that the Indiana Department of Child Services had taken Hayden in 2022 and placed the boy in his mother's custody, but this was untrue; Hayden's mother had no idea where he was. There was also no record of Hayden having ever been enrolled in school anywhere, although he graduated from a Head Start school readiness program in 2018.

A photo of Dustin is posted with this case summary; he is considered the primary person of interest in Hayden's disapppearance. He was arrested at a traffic stop in November 2024, as he was found to be in possession of heroin, methamphetamine and a syringe. He was charged with possession of a narcotic drug, possession of meth and possession of paraphernalia on December 4. Nine days later, while out on bond in the drug case, Dustin fatally overdosed.

Authorities believe other people who are still living may know what happened to Hayden. Foul play is possible in his case; many of his relatives believe he is dead. His case remains unsolved.

 

[Innana]

This case is horrific. That child was failed in every way possible.

 

[tlcya]

one month since we've had any sort of update. This disappearing of this child did not happen in a vacuum. Someone knows something. I hope appropriate pressure is being applied to whoever knows where Mr. Manis disposed of this sweet boy. Who is this witness who disclosed to LE that Hayden was killed and disposed of? Was it the father's girlfriend? If so, why is she not facing some sort of concealment of a death charges at the very least?

 

[Iknewit80]

Age-progression to age 9 (circa 2024)

Hayden Ian Lee Manis - The Charley Project

 

[tlcya]

there have been zero updates in the past month regarding the investigation into what happened to Hayden.

 

[truthfinder2019]

I hope this means they have concrete leads. I hope..

 

[tlcya]

Still nothing. crickets. Someone knows where this little guy was disposed of. Someone needs to speak, he deserves at least the dignity of allowing extended family to mourn his loss and lay whatever remains to rest.

 

[Unalienable Rights]

What happened to Hayden? | 13 Investigates reveals new details about when Muncie boy was last seen

13 Investigates reported the Muncie child had been missing for nearly five years before anyone brought his disappearance to the attention of police.

www.wthr.com

July 23, 2025

13News has discovered new details about the disappearance of Hayden Manis, as detectives in Delaware County desperately seek answers about the Muncie boy who has not been seen in more than four years.

*****
The details gathered by 13 Investigates from new interviews and never-before-seen police video help establish a new timeline of the disappearance, show revealing information about a key witness questioned by detectives, and provide disturbing insights into what happened inside the home where Hayden lived before he vanished.

*****
A poster asking for help in finding the missing Muncie boy states Hayden was last seen just a few days later, in January 2020, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

But 13 Investigates has discovered Hayden was actually seen months later in New Castle, Ind. That tip came to 13News from a woman who says she was at the New Castle Motorsports Park in late August 2020, where she saw Hayden sitting in the second row of spectator stands watching a go-kart race.

13 Investigates spoke to a second person who confirmed he also saw Hayden at the same go-kart race in New Castle.

*****
The second person who told 13News he saw Hayden at the go-kart track is Paul Hall. He is the father of Crystal Hall, who was Dustin Manis’ girlfriend at the time Hayden is believed to have gone missing.

*****
Paul also owned the Muncie home where Hayden, Dustin and Crystal lived (along with Crystal’s two daughters) around the time of the disappearance. They all lived on one side of the house, and Paul and his wife lived on the other side.

“Dustin and Hayden actually did live on my property,” Paul told 13News. “Hayden actually called me ‘Mr. Grandpa’ while he was there. I babysat him several times.”

13 Investigates talked with Paul on multiple occasions over the past six months. He does not want to meet in person to discuss Hayden’s disappearance because he said he fears an in-person interview could subject his family to harassment.

*****

This is a very lengthy article. See more at the link and in the following video.

 

[tlcya]

The video of Dustin shows he is clearly tweaking during that traffic stop.

I am so sad for Hayden's loved ones. This child needs found, it is obvious he is dead but closure is needed.

 

[tlcya]

I disbelieve Mr. Grandpa. He lived adjacent to his daughter, Dustin and Hayden. The likelihood that his daughter wasn't also engaged in heavy drug abuse is slim to non IMO. Being right next door I find it incredible to me that he was unaware of that activity in a home that shares a wall with their living quarters. JMO

And yes, Crystal Hall is absolutely a POI in this case. (per the county prosecutor at the video mark 7:32)

I dislike the teasing of the next installment documentary but am very curious to hear what she has to say in tomorrow's episode.

 

[Sillybilly]

ADMIN NOTE:

At approx 13:40 in the above video, the prosecutor has stated that Crystal Hall is a POI in this case because she lived in the same home (not necessarily a suspect).

Based on the above, members may sleuth Crystal Hall.

 

[TwinkieDefense]

July 24, 2025 article

13 Investigates: New details suggest missing Muncie boy is dead, body put in trash compactor

13 Investigates reported the Muncie child had been missing for nearly five years before anyone brought his disappearance to the attention of police.

www.wthr.com

[…]

But so far, investigators have no break in the case. No signs of Hayden. No arrest. (You can read legal analysis about the case below.)

[…]