Found Deceased NC - Maddox Ritch, 6 w/Autism, Gastonia, 22 Sept 2018

[MissMalowe]

Are we allowed to post a FB acct. belonging to Maddox if it's a joint account shared with another adult?

 

[LietKynes]

Are mugshots allowed ?
Curious about the relationship of the parents.

 

[Rockfarmer]

We should not be sleuthing parents/family.

 

[MissMalowe]

Are mugshots allowed ?
Curious about the relationship of the parents.

I don't think we can post mugshots until said person has been named a POI since this forum is victim friendly.

I wrote Tricia to ask about the joint FB acct since that might be iffy even though the official name on the acct includes Maddox.

 

[katydid23]

Wow.

Sorry... but damn.
I could prob. catch a 6 year old.
I'm not young-- but if there was even one other person with me-- yes, we could catch up to a child.
And if he was autistic -- I'd be extra vigilant ,as a child who is non-verbal might not be able to let me know he wanted to 'take a walk' or 'go and see something'.
He'd just leave.

I haven't worked with autistic children-- but if this is your own child -- by the age of six years old, you know him/her pretty well ,and what to expect from their behavior.
It's called "elopements" when they wander off, I think.

Losing sight of him and suddenly realizing he was gone-- that would be different.

I am a bit behind on this thread, but followed since the start. If the Dad was walking with a female friend, there is a possibility the friend distracted him, .....AND they might not have noticed quickly enough, that the child had run far ahead of them.

Kids are quick. But an adult should be able to catch up to a 6 yr old because the stride is much larger.

 

[Rockfarmer]

If LE hasn't named the parents as suspects, I believe they are victims and off-limits here

 

[dadgum]

dadgum ; your pic is not showing correctly.
No idea why..isyou can search the park name and find the map.

Does it seem odd the FBI was brought in so soon? There is quick access to 321 from the parking area. Local news here downplayed the absence of parents. There's no amber alert, no one saw anything. I really hope it's not another parent dumping a disabled child. It happens too often, and they always seem to "just disappear".

 

[swanniee11]

I wouldn't post anyone that has not been named in MSM. Also, since he is a minor, even though his name may be attached, I wouldn't post that either. IMO

 

[heartgoesout]

Saw via Facebook just now. Trying to catch up.

 

[LietKynes]

We should not be sleuthing parents/family.

No sleuthing was needed.
When someone commits a crime -- the information is public knowledge . The records are posted online.
Not disagreeing , just pointing this out.
As of now, there are no indications of foul play.

I am curious why Maddox hasn't been found yet-- if he's in the park (alive or not ) ?
--- It's not a large area.

If he's in the water, the dogs should have found his scent trail to the edge.
This is incredibly sad !

 

[heartgoesout]

On the NBC News Dateline FB page, there's a screenshot of the dad's with a disturbing text.
Under the initials JDT ,4 hours ago .

Might just be me... but it seems like a strange way to describe your missing child.

Yikes. It's not just you!

 

[HeartOfGranite]

Here are a couple of photos I took at the park a year or so ago that show the woods on the other side of the trail at the back of the lake near the spillway (and the shooting range is somewhere on the other side) and the pipe from the spillway (which was probably one of the first places they looked). The trail in question has the lake on the inside and mostly woods on the outside. Every point is visible from any other point.

 

[HeartOfGranite]

What’s the weather been like? Highs and lows? Forecast the next day or two? Curious

80's on Saturday, high 70's Sunday and Monday, high 60's overnight. Forecast low 80's all week with storms on Wednesday/Thursday.

 

[heartgoesout]

Why an AMBER Alert has not been issued for missing boy in Gastonia

 

[cass523]

Updated: 10:17 PM EDT September 24, 2018 More than 80 leads

More than 80 leads generated in search for missing six-year-old with special needs

 

[AmyPond]

Leads? I don't get it. What kind of leads do they mean in a case where a child supposedly just ran off in a park?

 

[IceIce9]

Leads? I don't get it. What kind of leads to they mean in a case where a child supposedly just ran off in a park?

That was my thought the first time I saw the term “leads” a few hours ago.

More than 80 leads could mean more than 80 people spotted him, or the father and the other adult at the park, and reported to police? Maybe some people reported that they saw the three of them together, and the approximate time and place. Others might have reported seeing the adults running after him?

I am just totally guessing here what some of the “more than 80 leads” might be.

 

[LietKynes]

Some questions :
1) If (and I believe they were/are) authorities are asking anyone to come forward with photos and/or videos of themselves in the park that day --are LE ,etc., wanting to know if Maddox was even at the park that day ?

2)Are there any cameras at all in that park, and if so-- how were the people with Maddox acting ? Happy at first and then nervous after Maddox ran off ? Do they show up on camera or not ?
How much of the park do sec. cams cover ? Just the entrance ?

Forgot her name. sorry --- but there was a case of a young lady who was found dead in her apt. bathtub --and the perp was spotted later that day in a park on camera-- throwing evidence into a trash can. He'd said he was elsewhere.


3) Is the park being treated like a crime scene--- with police tape around the premises ?

 

[MsMarple]

Updated: 10:17 PM EDT September 24, 2018 More than 80 leads

More than 80 leads generated in search for missing six-year-old with special needs

From your link:

Special attention was also being paid to the lake.

"One thing that we are doing to add to the search of the lake and the air search is we also have been draining the lake back so that we can see the shoreline, and we're also now taking K9, specialty dogs, around the lake just looking for any other possible leads or any other thing we can find," added Chief Helton.
...
According to Gastonia Police, Maddox Ritch was last seen at Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia Saturday afternoon. Prior to his disappearance, he was last seen with his father and another adult.
-------

I don't quite understand the last sentence. Does it mean a witness saw Maddox with the father and friend as was reported earlier? Why the passive wording, why not just say a witness reported seeing them at the park? Argh, msm!

 

[BlkMtnGirl]

IMHO, you’d have to be pretty dumb to make up a story about losing a child around that very open and public lake path as it has been described. Also, there’s a witness who has not much to gain by being in on it. Now, if dad had said he and Maddox were on a walk alone in the woods, that would be different.