Police in Indiana confirmed a body matching the description of a missing 4-year-old autistic girl who has been missing since Thursday was recovered from a retention pond located near where she went missing.
On Thursday, Fiedwenya “NeeGee” Fiefe went missing. A Silver Alert was issued for the missing child, last seen wearing a long pink nightgown, and searches continued into Friday in the Legacy Farms neighborhood area in hopes of finding her.
The Plainfield Police Department announced a tragic end to the search on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
“Despite the valiant efforts of our citizens, volunteers, police, fire, along with local and state agencies, the search for missing NeeGee has come to a devastating and heartbreaking end,” Plainfield police said in a statement.
Police said the Hendricks County Coroner’s Office will determine the child’s identity for exact confirmation. Police said the body of the child did match the description of NeeGee, however.
“We ask that the public please keep Fiedwenya Fiefe‘s family in their thoughts and prayers and respect their privacy at this time,” police said.
Anywhere from 50 to 100 police officers and firefighters were searching the neighborhood on Friday morning. Neighbors joined in the search with so many responding to calls for volunteers that authorities had to put out a statement stating they had all the volunteers they needed.
A woman who identified herself as NeeGee’s mother said there had been a miscommunication that played a part in the child going missing and that she had mistakenly thought the girl was with her grandmother.
According to the woman, Fiedwenya has autism and may have wandered off. The girl is non-verbal and attracted to water.
Police searched 14 ponds in three neighborhoods around the child’s home.
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