Searchers discovered the lifeless body of a four-year-old autistic girl who had gone missing from her family’s rental home in Florida, officials announced on Friday.
Evelyn K. Geer was reported missing at 1 a.m. on Friday, June 2, only to be found deceased six hours later in Port Charlotte, Florida. The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office announced the tragic discovery via Facebook, stating that they had found the girl’s remains near the water’s edge, behind the rental where her family was staying.
Aviation units and a trained bloodhound were deployed in the search operation, which unfolded in the town 30 miles north of Fort Myers. Claudette Smith, the public information officer for the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, said that it is uncertain when the autopsy will be performed.
According to the sheriff’s office, Evelyn’s body was found during an extensive search which included a boat affiliated with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The statement indicated that Evelyn had wandered away from the Vrbo property (an Expedia Group company) where her family had sought refuge after being displaced by Hurricane Ian in September of the previous year. Unfortunately, the rental property lacked a deadbolt lock, which the family typically used at home due to Evelyn’s autism.
911 recordings released by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office captured Evelyn’s distraught mother, also named Evelyn, expressing shock over the unfolding tragedy. When asked to describe her daughter, Evelyn said she was dressed only in a diaper. Emotionally, she exclaimed, “Oh, God. Oh, God!” while explaining that her daughter was approximately three feet tall with long brown hair styled in a ponytail.
Searchers found Evelyn’s body shortly after 7 a.m. Smith, the public information officer, gave the update to the press, stating that Evelyn’s body had been found behind the residences on Barksdale Street, Port Charlotte, near a canal.
Steve Stotler, a resident of the area, recounted being awakened by the sound of helicopters at 4 a.m., before an officer informed him about the ongoing search for a four-year-old girl.
