Virginia couple arrested after 5-year-old nonverbal daughter is found dead in South Carolina waters

A Virginia couple have been arrested after their 5-year-old daughter, described as autistic and nonverbal, was found dead in South Carolina waters this week.

John Herb Hayes III, 70, and Geordyn Nichole Hayes, 31, of Bristol, were arrested Monday evening in Carter County, Tennessee, and charged with unlawfully placing a child at risk or willfully abandoning a child, the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office announced.

Their daughter, Saylor Hayes, was reported missing Sunday afternoon. Her body was found Monday morning in the waters near Hagley Landing, a boat ramp leading to the Waccamaw River in the small town of Pawleys Island, South Carolina, following an extensive search involving hundreds of people and multiple agencies.

The arrest warrant affidavits for the parents say that on Sunday, they placed Saylor at risk of harm by “failing to provide supervision and safeguards appropriate for a severely nonverbal, autistic five-year-old child with known affinity to water and history of elopement.”

The parents were being held at the Carter County Detention Center in Tennessee without bond pending an extradition hearing. It was not immediately clear Wednesday night whether they have attorneys.

Authorities initially said Saylor’s mother reported that her child had wandered off from a rental…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/health