Latest / Least of These / 236. "Monroe’s Little Angel" - The Case of Nevaeh Buchanan - Monroe, Michigan

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236. "Monroe’s Little Angel" - The Case of Nevaeh Buchanan - Monroe, Michigan · Least of These

0:02
[SPEAKER_01]: Welcome to least of these, where I cover the cases that need it most, because every life matters and everyone deserves justice.
0:09
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm your host Leah D. and today I'll be covering the case of Navea Buchanan and Monroe Michigan.
0:15
[SPEAKER_01]: Today's case involves the murder of a child.
0:18
[SPEAKER_01]: Listener discretion is definitely advised, and with that said, let's get right to it.
1:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday and May.
1:04
[SPEAKER_01]: In the U.S., it's a time dedicated to honoring all military personnel who have died while serving in the armed forces.
1:11
[SPEAKER_01]: A time to mourn their loss and to reflect on their sacrifices.
1:16
[SPEAKER_01]: For many families, Memorial Day weekend also serves as the unofficial start of the summer season.
1:22
[SPEAKER_01]: Many schools are wrapping up.
1:24
[SPEAKER_01]: There are barbecues and graduation ceremonies and a feeling that those long summer days are just around the corner.
1:32
[SPEAKER_01]: and Monroe Michigan in May of 2009 at the Charlotte Arms Department Complex right off North McCollum Street.
1:39
[SPEAKER_01]: That summer feeling was in full force.
1:42
[SPEAKER_01]: It was Memorial Day weekend.
1:44
[SPEAKER_01]: The weather was beautiful.
1:46
[SPEAKER_01]: Windows were open and children were playing all around the complex.
1:50
[SPEAKER_01]: It was Sunday, May 24.
1:52
[SPEAKER_01]: One of those kids out running around in the parking lot was five-year-old Naveya Buchanan, her brown hair boundst as she moved along on her scooter.
2:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveya had just finished preschool.
2:03
[SPEAKER_01]: She had graduated from the Discovery preschool program at Cantrick, all of the end of the year festivities were over, and it was finally time for the freedom that comes with summer.
2:14
[SPEAKER_01]: She'd have more time to drive her power wheels escalate, play with her stuffed animals, and ride her little tricycle scooter.
2:21
[SPEAKER_01]: Little Neveia lived at the Charlotte Arms Apartments with her maternal grandmother Sherry.
2:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Her mother, Jennifer Buchanan, also lived at that apartment, but Sherry was her legal guardian.
2:33
[SPEAKER_01]: You see, Jennifer had been in an out of trouble with the law.
2:36
[SPEAKER_01]: She had been convicted of first-degree home invasion in 2006.
2:40
[SPEAKER_01]: According to Jennifer, she had been breaking into homes to support a drug habit.
2:45
[SPEAKER_01]: She had been released in placed on probation, and for about two and a half months living with her mom and Navaya in that apartment.
2:52
[SPEAKER_01]: About that home invasion, Jennifer told CNN, I was in some trouble, but after I got out, I focused on getting my daughter and getting my life back together.
3:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Either way, Jennifer was the one home that evening of May 24.
3:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Grandmother Sherry was at work.
3:09
[SPEAKER_01]: It was getting late in the evening about 630 p.m. when according to Jennifer as she spoke to CNN, Navea changed her clothes, grabbed a pop sickle and headed out the door to go play with a friend and neighbor's upstairs apartment.
3:22
[SPEAKER_01]: Jennifer was sitting on the couch watching reruns of John and Kate plus 8.
3:27
[SPEAKER_01]: About 30 minutes passed in Jennifer thought that Navaya was off playing with her friend inside that neighbor's unit as she often did.
3:34
[SPEAKER_01]: But the daughter of Jennifer's friend, who had apparently stayed over the previous night, told her that she saw Navaya outside in the road on her scooter.
3:43
[SPEAKER_01]: According to Jennifer, Navaya wasn't supposed to be outside without supervision, though she knew when the child told her Navaya was in the road, she likely met in the parking lot of the complex.
3:54
[SPEAKER_01]: Jennifer threw on her flip flops and headed outside to look for her daughter.
3:58
[SPEAKER_01]: She looked around the parking lot, knocked on doors, and asked if anyone had seen Neveya.
4:03
[SPEAKER_01]: She checked the upstairs apartment of Neveya's little friend, but Neveya wasn't there.
4:09
[SPEAKER_01]: For about 45 minutes she searched, and then headed toward the edge of the property.
4:14
[SPEAKER_01]: You see, there was a playground behind that apartment complex, the playground for Hollywood Elementary School.
4:21
[SPEAKER_01]: And conveniently, there was a hole in the fence at just the right spot where the kids from
4:29
[SPEAKER_01]: Jennifer had to be thinking that's probably where Navaya had gone off to with one of her friends, and as she searched, she continued to ask if anyone had seen her daughter.
4:39
[SPEAKER_01]: Several people said that they had seen Navaya in that direction that evening.
4:44
[SPEAKER_01]: But when Jennifer got to the edge of the property, she was gripped with fear.
4:48
[SPEAKER_01]: There was her daughter's purple and green tricycle scooter, the one she loved to ride, but Navaya, while she was nowhere to be found.
4:57
[SPEAKER_01]: The scooter set a band in near the property line.
5:00
[SPEAKER_01]: At the same time, she called her mother Sherry, who was just getting ready to leave work.
5:05
[SPEAKER_01]: Sherry later recalled to click on Detroit that her daughter called an apanic, stating Mom, Navaya's gone, I can't find her.
5:13
[SPEAKER_01]: Sherry hopped in her car and ran every red light on telegraph road, headed straight for the Charlotte Arms Apartments in her granddaughter.
5:21
[SPEAKER_01]: At that point, somebody in its unclear who called 911 to report nevae a missing.
5:27
[SPEAKER_01]: It was around 8 p.m.
5:29
[SPEAKER_01]: Sherry made it to the apartment complex and so did police.
5:33
[SPEAKER_01]: Within minutes officers were swarming the apartments, but they couldn't find a way either.
5:39
[SPEAKER_01]: So at 1230 a.m. which technically takes us to Monday, May 25th, 2009, and Amber Alert was issued.
5:47
[SPEAKER_01]: Throughout the night and early morning hours, hundreds of local state and federal officers descended on the Charlotte Arms Apartments searching for the five-year-old.
5:57
[SPEAKER_01]: and soon it wouldn't just be law enforcement.
6:00
[SPEAKER_01]: As the community of Monroe, Michigan, learned that one of their own was missing.
6:03
[SPEAKER_01]: Volunteers showed up to search in droves.
6:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Hundreds of volunteers searched countless hours in square miles, hoping to bring little Navaya home.
6:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Less than 24 hours after five-year-old Niveyabukinan vanished from her home in Nero Michigan.
6:43
[SPEAKER_01]: Two men were taken into custody, technically for unrelated parole violations.
6:48
[SPEAKER_01]: But Monroe News reported that they were questioned heavily regarding the little girl's disappearance.
6:54
[SPEAKER_01]: It was Monday, May 25, 2009, when 39-year-old George Kennedy and 48-year-old Roy Lee Smith were named persons of interest in Navaya's case.
7:05
[SPEAKER_01]: So who were George Kennedy and Roy Lee Smith?
7:08
[SPEAKER_01]: As it turns out, both of the men were acquaintances or friends of Navaya's mother, Jennifer, just how close they were, I guess, depends on who you ask.
7:18
[SPEAKER_01]: And how had they violated their parole?
7:21
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, their various association with a child, any child was a violation of their conditions because both men were registered sex offenders.
7:31
[SPEAKER_01]: Let's start with Roy Lee Smith.
7:33
[SPEAKER_01]: According to an affidavit obtained by the Toledo blade, Roy Lee Smith was a friend or acquaintance of George Kennedy, you know the other sex offender.
7:43
[SPEAKER_01]: Smith had a criminal record dating back to the 1980s for trafficking in stolen property, cocaine possession, resisting arrest, breaking and entering, oh, and criminal sexual conduct.
7:55
[SPEAKER_01]: Roy Lee Smith had most recently been released from a state prison in February of 2008 after serving time for that 1991 conviction for criminal sexual conduct.
8:07
[SPEAKER_01]: And just before Nevada disappeared according to that affidavit, Smith gave his nephew's van to George Kennedy.
8:14
[SPEAKER_01]: and of course, that brings us to George Kennedy.
8:17
[SPEAKER_01]: Now, according to ABC in 1999, George Kennedy was charged with a felony for having sex with a girl under the age of 16.
8:26
[SPEAKER_01]: CNN reported that in that incident Kennedy lowered a young team to the side of a gas station where he forcibly raped her in his vehicle.
8:35
[SPEAKER_01]: Four years later, Kennedy was in trouble again.
8:37
[SPEAKER_01]: In 2002, George Kennedy was charged with home invasion and a costing a 13-year-old girl.
8:46
[SPEAKER_01]: According to CNN and that incident, Kennedy had tried to stick his tongue down the little girls throat.
8:52
[SPEAKER_01]: He also offered her weed in order to have sex with her.
8:56
[SPEAKER_01]: His former lawyer, Peter Sickles, told ABC that those two charges were combined in a plea deal that allowed him to be released from prison in 2003.
9:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Sickle seemed to suggest that his charges weren't as serious as they sounded.
9:10
[SPEAKER_01]: He hadn't broken into a home in a cost of a child like all at the same time.
9:15
[SPEAKER_01]: No, those were two separate events.
9:18
[SPEAKER_01]: He had invaded someone's home, full stop, and later, or maybe before, hell I don't know.
9:24
[SPEAKER_01]: But at a separate time, he then accosted a 13-year-old little girl.
9:29
[SPEAKER_01]: How that makes it any better, I couldn't tell you, but that was Peter Sickle's story.
9:34
[SPEAKER_01]: At some point, according to CNN, Kennedy also assaulted a 15-year-old.
9:39
[SPEAKER_01]: He grabbed her butt and tried to force himself on her.
9:43
[SPEAKER_01]: There were other charges dating all the way back to 1989 for weed, burglary, drug trafficking, and home invasions.
9:51
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, just to name a few.
9:53
[SPEAKER_01]: His criminal
9:57
[SPEAKER_01]: By 2009, Kennedy was living at a motel 7 near the Charlotte arms apartments.
10:03
[SPEAKER_01]: CNN reported that Jennifer Buchanan said that she had met him while reporting to her probation officer.
10:09
[SPEAKER_01]: She had reportedly known Kennedy for two years and it seemed he was a little more than just an acquaintance.
10:16
[SPEAKER_01]: Jennifer told the outlet that Kennedy was like a father figure Tenevaya, and that the little girl called him, quote, Daddy George, and that he frequently brought her toys and gifts.
10:27
[SPEAKER_01]: Nothing says father figure like a spot on the registry.
10:31
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean really, if that ain't enough to gag a maggot, I don't know what is.
10:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Anyhow, Jennifer went on to explain that she associated with this man, even though she knew about his past rape case, stating, I believe people should get a second chance.
10:48
[SPEAKER_01]: Though she believed he should have gotten a second chance, according to Jennifer, she kept her guard up and never left Kennedy alone with her daughter.
10:56
[SPEAKER_01]: Whether or not you believe that is completely up to you.
11:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Never the less, with Jennifer being one of the last people to see Navaya, and the background's on several of her associates, according to the Monroe News, Jennifer was questioned by police for hours.
11:12
[SPEAKER_01]: While police wouldn't reveal details of that questioning, Jennifer began to hold a Detroit free press, that investigators had recovered a letter from her trash that she had ripped up.
11:22
[SPEAKER_01]: That letter was to none other than George Kennedy.
11:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Jennifer, of course, claimed the letter had nothing to do with Navaya's disappearance, but you can see why investigators were growing more suspicious by the minute.
11:35
[SPEAKER_01]: When Sheriff Crutchfield was asked directly, if Jennifer Buchanan was a person of interest, he wouldn't comment either way, which speaks volumes if you ask me.
11:45
[SPEAKER_01]: At the same time, the Toledo blade reported that George Kennedy's motel room and the van he had gotten from the other offender were searched.
11:53
[SPEAKER_01]: In the motel room, investigators found a bloody towel, bloodstained shorts, and bloodstains above the sink.
11:59
[SPEAKER_01]: In the van, police found a case for a JVC radio face, with a silver multi-tool inside, which appeared to be stained with blood.
12:08
[SPEAKER_01]: ABC News reported that investigators also recovered photos of young girls, although it's unclear where exactly they were found.
12:17
[SPEAKER_01]: The Detroit Free Press also reported that a warrant, a condom, and child's toys were found in Kennedy's motel room.
12:24
[SPEAKER_01]: There were three miniature die-cast motorcycles lying on a desk near the door.
12:30
[SPEAKER_01]: The exact same kind of toys
12:36
[SPEAKER_01]: Monroe County Police spokesman, Major Dan Matlinsky, wouldn't confirm any of the reports of the evidence recovered, but he did tell the media that, quote, whatever was recovered was sent to the lab.
12:48
[SPEAKER_01]: And that wasn't all.
12:50
[SPEAKER_01]: The Toledo Blade reported that the last two children to see Nevada the apartments that Sunday had spoken to police.
12:57
[SPEAKER_01]: One of the children claimed that Navaya went into the woods to meet Daddy George, and that when she did, the child had witnessed Navaya being stabbed with a knife, and tried to help but couldn't.
13:08
[SPEAKER_01]: The other child claimed Navaya went into the woods and was kidnapped by a bad man and stabbed in the stomach.
13:14
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, it certainly wasn't looking good for George Kennedy.
13:18
[SPEAKER_01]: However, when Major Dan Matlinsky was asked directly about Kennedy, he told the media that Kennedy was only one of several persons of interest in the case.
13:28
[SPEAKER_01]: He stayed at.
13:29
[SPEAKER_01]: He is strictly that.
13:31
[SPEAKER_01]: We have no arrest solicitations pending.
13:34
[SPEAKER_01]: A child is still missing.
13:35
[SPEAKER_01]: We are looking in all directions.
13:39
[SPEAKER_01]: From behind bars, both Roy Lee Smith and George Kennedy denied any involvement and evay as disappearance.
13:45
[SPEAKER_01]: And an interview from the Monroe County jail, George Kennedy spoke to the Bladesmark writer and said in part, I didn't take her and I definitely didn't kill her.
13:55
[SPEAKER_01]: I have no clue.
13:56
[SPEAKER_01]: I wish that I did have some clue.
13:59
[SPEAKER_01]: I am hoping that she ain't dead.
14:01
[SPEAKER_01]: I've still got my fingers crossed that they are going to find her alive.
14:06
[SPEAKER_01]: What an odd statement to make, at this point all anyone knew was that Naveo was missing.
14:13
[SPEAKER_01]: Police continued their investigation, all 180 units of the apartment complex were checked, and all of the residents somewhere around 240 people were interviewed.
14:24
[SPEAKER_01]: They searched nearby quarries with divers, sonar equipment, and cadaver dogs.
14:30
[SPEAKER_01]: Hundreds of volunteers gathered and performed grid searches all over Monroe County.
14:35
[SPEAKER_01]: And tips flooded investigators.
14:38
[SPEAKER_01]: Within days police received hundreds of tips.
14:41
[SPEAKER_01]: And as a days ticked on, that number would reach thousands.
14:45
[SPEAKER_01]: There were leads, tips, and rumors, and investigators had to sift through them all to determine which were credible and which seemed promising at first, but in the end led them nowhere.
14:56
[SPEAKER_01]: By Friday, May 29, DNA results from the blood found on property owned by George Kennedy were in, and the blood was not a match to Neveia.
15:07
[SPEAKER_01]: He was still held in jail for that parole violation
15:16
[SPEAKER_01]: A candlelight vigil was held at the Charlotte Arms Apartments, hundreds attended to pray for Naveia's safe return.
15:23
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveia's family did what they could do to raise awareness about her disappearance, and in days the story had gone national.
15:31
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveia's case was featured on America's most wanted issues with Jane Beless Mitchell and Nancy Grace.
15:38
[SPEAKER_01]: won't get to one of those appearances on the Nancy Gray show here in a hot minute.
15:43
[SPEAKER_01]: But first, on May 31st, 2009, a 64-year-old man named James Easter was picked up and questioned by police after investigators learned he had visited the apartment complex around the same time Nevada disappeared.
15:57
[SPEAKER_01]: So he was questioned, and then when police dropped him back off at his home on
16:05
[SPEAKER_01]: According to the At the Time Sheriff of a Monroe County Tillman Crutchfield, about 15 minutes after being dropped off at his home, he built a fire in his backyard and was burning things.
16:16
[SPEAKER_01]: The sheriff told the Toledo blade that police put out the flames and that that incident elevated him a little bit more in terms of interest.
16:24
[SPEAKER_01]: You think?
16:26
[SPEAKER_01]: James Zester was charged with misdemeanor arson and held in the county jail.
16:31
[SPEAKER_01]: The outlet reported that it appeared the front and back doors that easter's home were smudge, apparently from having been dusted for prints.
16:39
[SPEAKER_01]: The outlet also observed a fire ring behind the duplex with a pile of ashes on a yellow
16:46
[SPEAKER_01]: A large sealed package of chicken pieces was on the back deck, as well as several baskets of flowers.
16:53
[SPEAKER_01]: The sheriff went on to say that technicians had searched the site and were evaluating items.
16:58
[SPEAKER_01]: The Detroit Free Press later reported that many items were taken as evidence from Easter's home.
17:04
[SPEAKER_01]: The evidence log was three pages long to include a burned sex toy, a role of duct tape, gloves from a red garbage can, and several Barbie dolls.
17:15
[SPEAKER_01]: Barbie dolls Easter told the outlet that he had gotten for his granddaughter and was planning to give her for Christmas.
17:22
[SPEAKER_01]: And just as a reminder, it was early June.
17:25
[SPEAKER_01]: I guess maybe it's possible he really liked to be prepared, I'll let you decide that one for yourself.
17:31
[SPEAKER_01]: Anyhow, Easter would later speak it linked to the Detroit Free Press.
17:36
[SPEAKER_01]: He told the outlet that the items he burned behind his duplex were receipts, some TV dinners, and a sex toy.
17:43
[SPEAKER_01]: A sex toy he claimed he felt shame about having.
17:47
[SPEAKER_01]: He also revealed that he had been interrogated for hours, and that when he was asked what he thought happened by FBI agents, he tried to answer the questions hypothetically, stating, if I was a bad guy and I was looking for something like a little girl or a little child, I would have drove my pickup in there.
18:05
[SPEAKER_01]: I would have made a horseshoe around the office and the pool.
18:08
[SPEAKER_01]: He continued stating that he would have pulled onto the street, turned on his hazard lights, pretended to have a vehicle problem, and then, quote, snuck up along the blindsided those pine trees, walked clear to where she had been.
18:21
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a long ways to go.
18:24
[SPEAKER_01]: You have to go past the dumpsters, then there is an opening before you get to the street.
18:29
[SPEAKER_01]: There were always maintenance people hanging around there.
18:33
[SPEAKER_01]: Oddly specific, am I right?
18:36
[SPEAKER_01]: Regardless, James Easter was released from custody and to date hasn't been charged in this case.
18:42
[SPEAKER_01]: Although his name is gonna come up again, we'll get there, I promise.
18:47
[SPEAKER_01]: nine days after Navaya vanished on June 2nd police Hutter Press conference.
18:52
[SPEAKER_01]: They remained pretty tight-lipped on details of their investigation, but did say that they were following all leads and were looking at several persons of interest and had questioned an ice cream truck driver.
19:03
[SPEAKER_01]: It was also announced that investigators were searching for two vans that had been parked at or near the playground near Hollywood Elementary School when Navaya vanished.
19:12
[SPEAKER_01]: They were late model minivans, one green and one silver,
19:17
[SPEAKER_01]: The sheriff also revealed that police had identified two boys who were at the Hollywood Elementary School playground between 6 and 7 p.m., which was about the time Niveau went missing.
19:27
[SPEAKER_01]: The two boys were just witnesses.
19:30
[SPEAKER_01]: Investigators were leaving no stone unturned, but despite a thorough investigation in extensive searches, five-year-old Niveau wouldn't be located by police or any of the hundreds
20:10
[SPEAKER_01]: 11 Days After 5-year-old Naveyabu Cannon vanished from her apartment on June 4, 2009, a father-son in grandson, were fishing down an embankment optics and road, which was a pretty popular fishing spot along the bank of the River Raisin.
20:25
[SPEAKER_01]: It was about 12 miles from the spot in Naveyabanish.
20:29
[SPEAKER_01]: CNN reported that the father, Guy Beckley, was sitting on rocks near the riverbank.
20:34
[SPEAKER_01]: He'd been fishing for about three hours, and the fish were biting.
20:38
[SPEAKER_01]: As he was there near the riverbank, he rested his feet on a block of concrete.
20:42
[SPEAKER_01]: He assumed was pavement left over after a road repair.
20:46
[SPEAKER_01]: Ever so often, the fisherman would get a whiff of a foul odor, at first guy assumed it was a smell of a dead fish somewhere nearby.
20:54
[SPEAKER_01]: But as he rested his feet on that concrete, it began to break apart, and when it did, he was swarmed with flies.
21:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Suspicious, he continued to break away pieces of the concrete until he saw what he clearly recognized as human flesh.
21:09
[SPEAKER_01]: He, like everyone else in Monroe, had been following Navaya's case, and his thoughts immediately went to the missing five-year-old.
21:16
[SPEAKER_01]: But he tried to push that thought out of his head.
21:19
[SPEAKER_01]: He stated to CNN, I didn't want it to be the child.
21:23
[SPEAKER_01]: I didn't want to be the one that found the child.
21:26
[SPEAKER_01]: I didn't want it to be the child, but I didn't know in my heart of hearts that it wasn't an animal that it was somebody.
21:32
[SPEAKER_01]: And as it turns out, it was a little girl.
21:36
[SPEAKER_01]: He immediately called 911, investigators arrived and they also believed Mr. Beckley had found Navaya, though a positive identification wouldn't come
21:47
[SPEAKER_01]: Police did reveal that clothing found on the body match a description of the clothing Navaya was wearing the night she banished, a light blue shirt with red and white stripes and needleing jeans.
21:58
[SPEAKER_01]: Sheriff Cratchfield revealed that a press conference that the little girl had been buried along the river of quote for a while.
22:04
[SPEAKER_01]: and that there were no obvious signs of trauma or abuse to her body, so they didn't know how she had died, but it was clear that there was foul place since concrete or cement had been placed on top of her body in the makeshift grave.
22:18
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveya Buchanan had been found, but her killer was still out there on the loose.
22:23
[SPEAKER_01]: likely right in the midst of their Monroe community.
22:27
[SPEAKER_01]: Sheriff Crutchfield said, that person to our knowledge is still out there in the community.
22:32
[SPEAKER_01]: In my opinion, it is a very sick or disturbed person we are looking for, a person that is able to abduct a murder and innocent five-year-old.
22:40
[SPEAKER_01]: The sheriff went on to say that he believed the killer was local.
22:43
[SPEAKER_01]: The community was on edge.
22:45
[SPEAKER_01]: There was a killer among them, but they continued to band together.
22:49
[SPEAKER_01]: The group said a gather to search for the little girl, now gathered near the river to pray.
22:54
[SPEAKER_01]: The site quickly became a memorial.
22:57
[SPEAKER_01]: Four days after Navaya's body was found, her mom Jennifer appeared on the Nancy Gray Show, and I'm sure I don't have to tell you, but Nancy isn't afraid to ask the hard questions.
23:08
[SPEAKER_01]: And true Nancy Grace fashion, she did.
23:11
[SPEAKER_01]: Asking Jennifer to recount the last time she saw her daughter, Nancy also pressed her on why she would allow a registered sex offender access to her five-year-old.
23:21
[SPEAKER_01]: Take a listen.
23:23
[SPEAKER_02]: With us live right now, the mother of Little Nevada, Jennifer at Buchanan, Ms. Buchanan, thank you for being with us.
23:32
[SPEAKER_04]: Hi, Nancy.
23:34
[SPEAKER_02]: Ms. Buchanan, what happened?
23:38
[SPEAKER_02]: Take us through the last moments that you were with, Nezaya, what happened?
23:45
[SPEAKER_04]: The last moment that I was with my daughter.
23:47
[SPEAKER_02]: The last few moments, yes.
23:51
[SPEAKER_04]: She come in the house, she changed her clothes.
23:55
[SPEAKER_04]: After she changed her clothes, she said that she was going back upstairs to her friend's house.
24:00
[SPEAKER_00]: Mm-hmm.
24:04
[SPEAKER_04]: grabbed a popsicle on the way out the door and she, you know, I didn't see her.
24:09
[SPEAKER_02]: The last time I seen her was that security.
24:12
[SPEAKER_02]: What time?
24:14
[SPEAKER_02]: 630.
24:15
[SPEAKER_04]: 630 p.m. Yeah, when did you learn that they was missing?
24:24
[SPEAKER_04]: about about half an hour after she went outside I had a really good friend of mine and her daughter stayed the night with us and my good friends daughter came in and she said, Navaya's outside riding her scooter in the road.
24:42
[SPEAKER_04]: And then, whenever I immediately got up and I looked for my shoes, it took a couple minutes, a few minutes, it looked for my shoes and then after that, I went outside and I noticed that she was missing and called her name, looked through apartment buildings, went to a couple, quite a few of her friends' houses, thinking that she could have been in one of their homes.
25:14
[SPEAKER_02]: You stated that it was about 30 minutes later, when the little girl came and said, Navaya's outside on her scooter in the road.
25:23
[SPEAKER_02]: 30 minutes passed.
25:26
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, because she told me that she was going back up stairs to her friend's house.
25:30
[SPEAKER_04]: And that's assuming where she went.
25:33
[SPEAKER_02]: Now, you stated that you, quote, got up, where were you?
25:39
[SPEAKER_04]: I was just sitting right there on the couch and I was like thinking about what I was going to make for dinner because it was around dinner time too and she told me that she wasn't hungry at the moment but I knew that she had to eat something.
25:57
[SPEAKER_04]: So she come in and she grabbed a popsicle on the way out the door and that's normally about when I know she's getting hungry.
26:07
[SPEAKER_04]: There's a lot of times that she's told me no, but, you know, she lies.
26:12
[SPEAKER_04]: She lies.
26:15
[SPEAKER_04]: Did you just say the little girl?
26:17
[SPEAKER_04]: About her hunger.
26:20
[SPEAKER_04]: She lied about her, you should normally she lies about her hunger.
26:23
[SPEAKER_02]: Ms. Becannon, I was just listening to what you said on the airways in the radio interview and you stated something about George Kennedy may have owed somebody some money.
26:36
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm not too sure.
26:38
[SPEAKER_02]: How could that possibly be linked to your daughter's disappearance?
26:43
[SPEAKER_02]: The fact that this sex offender friend of yours out somebody's so many, how could that remotely be linked to your child's disappearance?
26:54
[SPEAKER_04]: I honestly don't know.
26:56
[SPEAKER_04]: But you're the one that said it.
26:57
[SPEAKER_02]: So you must have known something.
27:00
[SPEAKER_04]: All these scenarios are just running through my head constantly and I think that possibly He might have owed someone money and as to get to him is through a close loved one or you know anything all these Thoughts are just running through my head You also stated in an interview that in your mind You hold him responsible
27:26
[SPEAKER_02]: I don't put it past him.
27:28
[SPEAKER_02]: Okay, if you don't put it past him, if you don't put it past him, what were you doing exposing your daughter to him?
27:39
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, Nancy, I know that I've made a lot of bad choices.
27:50
[SPEAKER_04]: who hasn't.
27:51
[SPEAKER_02]: Well, you know what, you can just stop right there.
27:54
[SPEAKER_02]: You can just stop right there.
27:55
[SPEAKER_02]: It means be counted because most mothers that I know have never knowingly exposed their little girl, a five-year-old little girl to a sex off-dendor.
28:07
[SPEAKER_02]: So when you say who has it, I for one haven't.
28:11
[SPEAKER_02]: I haven't.
28:14
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, I just believe that everyone deserves a second chance.
28:18
[SPEAKER_02]: You know, and that's an interesting point, Ms. Dixon.
28:21
[SPEAKER_02]: You know, because Mr. Kennedy has a wrap sheet dating back, we believe prior to 2001, there's marijuana possession.
28:31
[SPEAKER_02]: There's home invasion.
28:34
[SPEAKER_02]: There's criminal sex conduct, a costing children.
28:38
[SPEAKER_02]: There is the rape of the 15-year-old girl that he said was consensual.
28:43
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, I've been hearing about all those, I didn't learn about all of those until after I got to know him.
28:51
[SPEAKER_04]: Like maybe a couple of months after I got to know him.
28:54
[SPEAKER_04]: Yes, I did check him out.
28:56
[SPEAKER_04]: I confronted him about it, and especially about the other girl.
29:01
[SPEAKER_04]: And he completely told me that she was 15, he was 26, and it was consensual.
29:07
[SPEAKER_02]: They're not really...
29:08
[SPEAKER_02]: There's no such thing as consensual sex with a 15-year-old in that jurisdiction.
29:14
[SPEAKER_02]: That is rape.
29:16
[SPEAKER_02]: All right.
29:16
[SPEAKER_02]: Now, you just told me that you found out about two months after getting to know him, but even knowing about this rap sheet, this very extensive rap sheet, you still had him around your daughter.
29:31
[SPEAKER_02]: Why?
29:34
[SPEAKER_04]: because I knew that I was going to keep her close.
29:40
[SPEAKER_03]: And she was never left alone with him to my knowledge.
29:43
[SPEAKER_02]: Never to know with him.
29:45
[SPEAKER_02]: Really, Miss Howard, and Holly Howard, and friend of the various mother, Miss Howard, are you there 24-7?
29:53
[SPEAKER_03]: No, I'm not.
29:54
[SPEAKER_03]: I have been with her every since her child has been missing.
29:57
[SPEAKER_02]: Well, you know what, that's really not doing a whole lot of good is it?
29:59
[SPEAKER_02]: If you're not there 24, 7, then you don't know what happened.
30:04
[SPEAKER_02]: And my question is, forget about the sex offender just for a moment.
30:08
[SPEAKER_02]: Let's just suspend our disbelief for a moment.
30:11
[SPEAKER_02]: So, your child is out.
30:13
[SPEAKER_02]: It's been 30 minutes since you last saw her.
30:16
[SPEAKER_02]: Did you think maybe I should check on my preschooler?
30:19
[SPEAKER_02]: See if she's dead or alive?
30:21
[SPEAKER_02]: I mean, did that cross your mind?
30:26
[SPEAKER_04]: No, because I knew that she was upstairs at her friend's house until the little girl came to me and said that Navaya was riding her scooter in the road.
30:34
[SPEAKER_04]: How did you know she was up for her?
30:35
[SPEAKER_02]: Did you check on her?
30:37
[SPEAKER_02]: Did you go out there?
30:38
[SPEAKER_02]: Ever?
30:40
[SPEAKER_04]: I watched her walk into the door.
30:43
[SPEAKER_04]: Really?
30:44
[SPEAKER_04]: Because earlier you said she went out of the door.
30:46
[SPEAKER_04]: We were just at home.
30:50
[SPEAKER_04]: She changed her clothes.
30:51
[SPEAKER_04]: Everything else.
30:52
[SPEAKER_04]: I went upstairs at one point.
30:54
[SPEAKER_04]: I watched her walk into the door.
30:56
[SPEAKER_04]: I came back downstairs.
30:58
[SPEAKER_04]: I went.
31:00
[SPEAKER_04]: One inside.
31:01
[SPEAKER_02]: Because in your first version, in your first version, you never got off the sofa.
31:07
[SPEAKER_02]: She took a bot sickle, went out the door.
31:09
[SPEAKER_02]: You never said anything in your first version about watching a rock out there.
31:13
[SPEAKER_04]: I was first sitting down.
31:17
[SPEAKER_04]: I got back up.
31:18
[SPEAKER_04]: I watched her walk up there.
31:20
[SPEAKER_04]: She come back down stairs.
31:23
[SPEAKER_04]: She changed her clothes, she walked back out the door with a popsicle, and then that's whenever I was like, she said, Mom, I'm going back upstairs to Austin's house.
31:35
[SPEAKER_01]: After that exchange, the show cut to commercial, and when Nancy returned, Jennifer Buchanan and her friend and left, the cameras were still rolling as the two women unhooked their mics and left the studio mid-interview.
31:47
[SPEAKER_01]: And let's be real.
31:49
[SPEAKER_01]: That whole exchange
31:52
[SPEAKER_01]: The fact that Jennifer said her daughter lies just days after she had been brutally murdered or that her story kept changing.
31:59
[SPEAKER_01]: Or the fact that she had nine million and one excuses for allowing her precious little girl to be around the likes of George Kennedy.
32:07
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, whether or not he had anything to do with Nivey as murder, you just don't allow your children around pedophiles, and you certainly don't let them call them daddy.
32:17
[SPEAKER_01]: It's sick.
32:19
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure, Nancy was tough, but she was just saying what everyone else was thinking.
32:23
[SPEAKER_01]: The day after Jennifer Buchanan stormed off an anti-grace show, police announced that DNA confirmed what investigators already knew.
32:31
[SPEAKER_01]: The body found near the river raisin was that of five-year-old Navaya Buchanan.
32:36
[SPEAKER_01]: And on this same day, George Kennedy and Roy Smith were both sent a present, nothing technically related to Navaya's murder, just a fact that their parole had been revoked for being around a child and they'd have to serve the rest of their sentences behind bars.
32:51
[SPEAKER_01]: Neither of the two would be eligible for parole until at least May of 2011.
32:56
[SPEAKER_01]: Four legal purposes, let me make it clear.
32:59
[SPEAKER_01]: Neither George Kennedy nor Roy Leesmith have ever been considered anything more than persons of interest when it comes to Navaya, and they have not been charged in connection with her disappearance or murder.
33:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, lad, we said that.
33:33
[SPEAKER_01]: On June 13, 2009, Little Nevea was laid to rest.
33:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Over 700 people attended the services and countless residents line the streets, releasing balloons as a funeral procession past or Monroe.
33:47
[SPEAKER_01]: Nevea was remembered for her love for school, stuffed animals and motorcycles.
33:53
[SPEAKER_01]: The following day, the autopsy results were released to the public, and with that, an already tragic case became absolutely heartbreaking.
34:02
[SPEAKER_01]: According to the autopsy report obtained by 11 Investigates, Navaya had been found face-down in case and concrete.
34:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Dr. Carl Schmidt of the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office performed the autopsy and his findings were horrific.
34:17
[SPEAKER_01]: Five-year-old Naveya had suffocated after inhaling dirt.
34:21
[SPEAKER_01]: The medical examiner believed Naveya had been murdered either by having her face forcibly pressed into the dirt until she suffocated, or that she had been buried alive.
34:31
[SPEAKER_01]: Either way, her death had not been quick or painless.
34:35
[SPEAKER_01]: She had suffered at the hands of the monster who took her life near the banks of the river raising, and he, or they, were still out there.
34:44
[SPEAKER_01]: Investigators continued to pursue any and all leads, but in the weeks, months, and ultimately years that passed after Nivebucanan's murder, those tips went from a flood to a trickle.
34:56
[SPEAKER_01]: It seems the focus shifted away from the original persons of interest in the case, that of course being George Kennedy, Roy Lee Smith and James Ester.
35:04
[SPEAKER_01]: Detective Heath Belliquit spoke to the media and stated, we are looking at a different direction in recent months based on our investigation.
35:13
[SPEAKER_01]: However, the community didn't exactly let those immediate persons of interest go, and for good reason.
35:20
[SPEAKER_01]: About a year after Navaya's murder, the Detroit Free Press did a three-part series on Navaya's case, and in part of that series, they sat down and spoke extensively with James Easter.
35:31
[SPEAKER_01]: And let's just say that if the statements Easter had made to police work concerning, the ones he made to the Detroit Free Press were even more so,
35:40
[SPEAKER_01]: There were his statements, and then there was his connection to the Charlotte Arms Apartments.
35:46
[SPEAKER_01]: You see, Easter's longtime girlfriend Jane Austen also lived in those apartments, and she was likely one of the last people to see Nevada.
35:56
[SPEAKER_01]: about the day Navaya disappeared, Janey spoke to the outlet and said, it was five or six o'clock.
36:02
[SPEAKER_01]: I just saw her go by with a little boy behind her on the scooter.
36:05
[SPEAKER_01]: She was riding by like a wonderful little child.
36:08
[SPEAKER_01]: She went on to say, I came out and the scooter was sitting under my bedroom window right there, and Navaya was not there.
36:16
[SPEAKER_01]: They took her from right under my window.
36:18
[SPEAKER_01]: I wasn't there,
36:24
[SPEAKER_01]: Jane Yawson also said that she felt somebody she knew was involved and stated, but we were going to leave that alone.
36:32
[SPEAKER_01]: She did tell the outlet that she didn't think that person was her boyfriend James Easter, and that she didn't believe he had anything to do with a little girl's murder.
36:41
[SPEAKER_01]: But when James Easter sat down with a Detroit free press, he certainly did himself no favors.
36:47
[SPEAKER_01]: Easter invited the outlet inside his duplex him and row.
36:51
[SPEAKER_01]: A duplex he shared with three dogs, and he didn't even try to hide the fact that he was a creep.
36:57
[SPEAKER_01]: In his bedroom, pornography was stacked right there by his bed.
37:01
[SPEAKER_01]: A video featuring Ted Bundy was on the shelf in the front room, along with a multitude of newspapers about Navaya's disappearance and murder.
37:10
[SPEAKER_01]: He bragged to the reporter that he had collected almost every story written about Navaya's death and disappearance in the Monroe evening news.
37:17
[SPEAKER_01]: And then said, don't say, could this guy be collecting this because pedophiles and murders like to collect their little evidence?
37:24
[SPEAKER_01]: No.
37:26
[SPEAKER_01]: He then continued on saying he was frustrated by police since they still had his bedspread and more than a hundred of his ex-rated movies locked up in evidence.
37:36
[SPEAKER_01]: As the interview went on, things got down right creepy.
37:40
[SPEAKER_01]: After calling for capital punishment for the killer, Easter rambled on about how Navea might have been killed.
37:46
[SPEAKER_01]: He said, Man, visualize yourself on your knees at the edge of the river, and this little girl and you already have the whole dog and now you are holding her in there.
37:56
[SPEAKER_01]: Now what do you got?
37:57
[SPEAKER_01]: You got a pale here that you knocked over.
38:00
[SPEAKER_01]: And you scoop the rest over.
38:02
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe it's possible you could have done it by yourself and your hands are in there holding her down while she is struggling and her legs are kicking up and pretty soon she finally suffocates.
38:13
[SPEAKER_01]: As he spoke, he leaned over his bed and moved his arms like he was acting out what the killer might have done.
38:20
[SPEAKER_01]: He continued, now you and bed her legs and curl up her body whatever way you do.
38:25
[SPEAKER_01]: Put some more.
38:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe you have a second bag and you get some water from the river and start mixing some more quick and put it.
38:32
[SPEAKER_01]: He was well equipped.
38:33
[SPEAKER_01]: He or she or both of them knew what they were going to do.
38:37
[SPEAKER_01]: After that chilling rant, Easter shifted his focus to the first time he ever saw Little Neveia.
38:43
[SPEAKER_01]: He described every detail.
38:45
[SPEAKER_01]: Easter told the reporter that he was certain it was heard though he never saw her face.
38:50
[SPEAKER_01]: He recalled that he was looking through a sliding glass door, standing in Janie's apartment on the second floor.
38:56
[SPEAKER_01]: Neveia's hair was pulled back and she stood
39:05
[SPEAKER_01]: He recalled that he watched as she walked along the fence, letting her fingers drum against the metal.
39:11
[SPEAKER_01]: It was all very strange to say the least, while Easter has never been charged in connection to Nivey's death, and there have been reports that he is no longer a person of interest.
39:22
[SPEAKER_01]: There is an oddness to the way he speaks about the little five-year-old girl that sends shivers down the spine.
39:29
[SPEAKER_01]: Time ticked away as it always does, and Neveye's case which was once front page news, well it faded from the headlines.
39:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Neveye's family with her cousin Risa Smith at the forefront held countless vigils' benefits and charity events and founded Justice for Neveye.
39:46
[SPEAKER_01]: They did everything they could to keep Neveye's story out there and hopes that someone would come forward with information that would lead to her killer.
39:55
[SPEAKER_01]: And maybe someone did, because in May of 2014, the Monroe News published a report claiming that several investigators say they now believe they know who took and killed Nebeya.
40:06
[SPEAKER_01]: While no names were given a few details were...
40:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Like the fact that this man, whoever he was, was not any of the persons of interest named early in the investigation, and that he was currently in prison on another felony charge.
40:21
[SPEAKER_01]: Vice President of Justice for Navaya resists Smith spoke to CBS News and confirmed that she had been told by some of the investigators that they knew who kidnapped Navaya from the parking lot of the apartment complex and killed her, but they didn't have enough evidence to charge them,
40:40
[SPEAKER_01]: Risa went on to say that she had been told the suspect is in prison on unrelated domestic violence charges.
40:47
[SPEAKER_01]: But to her and her family, that isn't justice for Navaya, especially considering the fact that those investigators won't publicly reveal a name.
40:56
[SPEAKER_01]: She stated in part, there's a possibility if we had an idea of who this was, we could possibly find or talk to other people and get the information we need.
41:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Risa went on to say, I think they kind of justified it to some degree by telling us he would be in prison for the next decade on another unrelated felony.
41:14
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't see how anyone can say that's justice for Navaya.
41:20
[SPEAKER_01]: In 2021, there was a new sheriff in town, Troy Goodnaw officially took office on January 1, 2021, and he was well aware of Neveye's case.
41:31
[SPEAKER_01]: He had been with the Monroe County Sheriff's Office since 1987.
41:35
[SPEAKER_01]: When Sheriff Goodnaw took office, he promised to make solving Neveye's case one of his highest priorities, and he got to work, commissioning a team of investigators to take another look at the case.
41:46
[SPEAKER_01]: Navea's family continued to push for media coverage and by November of 2021, that push seemed to have led to a new tip.
41:55
[SPEAKER_01]: That fall, WTOL 11 Investigates did a piece on Navea's case, and during their investigation the outlet reported that a woman came forward with new information.
42:05
[SPEAKER_01]: This woman, who the outlet concealed her identity for her protection, told 11 Investigates that the day before Navaya went missing, the little girl had tried to let the air out of a tire in the parking lot.
42:17
[SPEAKER_01]: The woman stated, the day before she went missing, Navaya was looking at different vehicles in the parking lot.
42:22
[SPEAKER_01]: There was this black vehicle that she was trying to let air out of its tire.
42:26
[SPEAKER_01]: I told her mom and I think she got in trouble.
42:29
[SPEAKER_01]: The woman went on to say that she had never seen that black vehicle prior to that day.
42:34
[SPEAKER_01]: But on that day, the vehicle remained in the parking lot until the following day, which was a day and a day disappeared.
42:42
[SPEAKER_01]: For the journalist at 11 Investigates, this new information was stunning, considering what they had already uncovered.
42:49
[SPEAKER_01]: The outlet had already obtained a report from an incident that happened just prior to Nevada's disappearance at an apartment building just 3.2 miles from Nevada's home.
42:59
[SPEAKER_01]: According to that report, two children at the Greenwood Commons apartment told police that a man had exposed himself to them near a dumpster.
43:06
[SPEAKER_01]: According to these children, the man held his penis and asked him if they, quote, had ever seen one of these before.
43:14
[SPEAKER_01]: And that man, while he was driving a Black Grand Prix, a partial plate description led police right to him, and he ultimately pleaded guilty to obscene conduct.
43:24
[SPEAKER_01]: As investigators looked into the exposure incident, they learned through this man's mother and father that their son would get up in the morning, take a shower, and then not return home until late at night.
43:35
[SPEAKER_01]: They learned that he drove a black car, fished it various spots around Monroe, and perhaps most compelling of all.
43:41
[SPEAKER_01]: He was a friend of Roy Lee Smith, the sex offender who, as we know, was at least an acquaintance of Neville's mother.
43:48
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, these pedophile sure do hang out together now, don't they?
43:54
[SPEAKER_01]: Anyhow, it was all pretty compelling, 11 investigates of course pass that information along to law enforcement, and they did report that police interviewed the woman who came forward.
44:05
[SPEAKER_01]: What came of that, however, isn't known publicly.
44:32
[SPEAKER_01]: In 2022, after a request from ABC13 for an update on the case, the Sheriff's Office released a statement.
44:39
[SPEAKER_01]: It read in part.
44:40
[SPEAKER_01]: The investigation of the abduction and murder of Navea Buchanan has been open and ongoing since the day she disappeared, May 24, 2009.
44:49
[SPEAKER_01]: After taking office on January 21, 2021, Sheriff Goodna commissioned a separate team of investigators from the Sheriff's Office Detective Bureau, who partnered with Special Agents from the FBI's Ann Arbor Office to assist with investigative efforts.
45:04
[SPEAKER_01]: Together, the team has reviewed all investigative material, re-interviewed select witnesses, and are continuing to use cutting-edge forensic technology to develop leads.
45:14
[SPEAKER_01]: The investigation is sometimes referred to as a cold case.
45:18
[SPEAKER_01]: This investigation has never been closed, nor has it ever been reduced to a cold case.
45:23
[SPEAKER_01]: Rather, this investigation is very much active, and as long as sheriff good not is leading this organization, solving this heinous crime will always be among the highest of priorities.
45:34
[SPEAKER_01]: In an effort to protect the integrity of the investigation, we cannot discuss
45:46
[SPEAKER_01]: This Memorial Day weekend marks 17 years since Nivea Buchanan was abducted and murdered, and investigators are still searching for answers.
45:55
[SPEAKER_01]: Nivea is never far from the mind of Monroe County deputies.
45:58
[SPEAKER_01]: Her photo is on the wall of the law enforcement building, a memorial that deputies walk past every single day.
46:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Police revealed to click on Detroit that Nivea's file has and will always be on someone's
46:15
[SPEAKER_01]: The community of Monroe hasn't forgotten Nevada either.
46:19
[SPEAKER_01]: A discovery preschool, the school she had just graduated from, three days before her life was stolen from her.
46:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Her picture still hangs in the hallway, and her name is there on a bench at the edge of the playground.
46:32
[SPEAKER_01]: And scribed on her grave at St. Joseph's Cemetery are the words Monroe's little angel, seems pretty fitting for the little girl whose name is heaven spelled backwards.
46:42
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveia's murder forever altered the course of the lives of those in the community, the officers who worked her case, and those that loved her.
46:51
[SPEAKER_01]: Her cousin, Risa Smith, total 11 investigates that Naveia's murder changed her whole life.
46:56
[SPEAKER_01]: She revealed that when Naveia was killed, she was in college going for a bachelor's in business administration.
47:02
[SPEAKER_01]: But after Naveia's death, she shifted her focus and earned a bachelor's in criminal justice.
47:08
[SPEAKER_01]: Lisa Smith still pushes for answers.
47:11
[SPEAKER_01]: She runs justice for Navaya on Facebook, and a nonprofit focused on the children incorporated.
47:18
[SPEAKER_01]: And while most still cast suspicion on Roy Lee Smith, George Kennedy, or James Easter, Reese Smith is ensure the answer is so obvious, but she does believe that Navea likely knew her killer.
47:29
[SPEAKER_01]: She stated, Everyone that we talked to said she was very shy and she would not go up to someone she did not know.
47:36
[SPEAKER_01]: No one we talked to said they heard a kid crying or screaming or asking for help.
47:40
[SPEAKER_01]: Did she know this person and that's why she willingly went?
47:44
[SPEAKER_01]: Did she willingly go?
47:45
[SPEAKER_01]: Nobody knows that.
47:47
[SPEAKER_01]: Recent continued.
47:49
[SPEAKER_01]: I believe that there is a reason she was taken.
47:51
[SPEAKER_01]: I believe that.
47:52
[SPEAKER_01]: And obviously, someone knows that reason.
47:56
[SPEAKER_01]: Sheriff good not urges anyone with information to come forward, no matter how small.
48:01
[SPEAKER_01]: The Sheriff stated, if somebody has some information, regardless how minimal they may view it, please contact us here at the Sheriff's Office.
48:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Some people might say, I know police are doing something else, or I don't know that this has any connection to the crime.
48:16
[SPEAKER_01]: Let our detective determine if it has a nexus or not.
48:20
[SPEAKER_01]: It's amazing what just a little piece of information can do to lead us in a direction that I'm confident will be a very favorable outcome.
48:28
[SPEAKER_01]: If you have any information, please call the Detectives Bureau at 734-240-7530, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-773-2587.
48:33
[SPEAKER_01]: There is a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person
48:50
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveya, a Maya Buchanan, was born on February 3, 2004 to parents Jennifer Buchanan and Shayna Naza.
48:57
[SPEAKER_01]: She was born in Monroe, Michigan.
49:00
[SPEAKER_01]: Naveya had a love for life.
49:02
[SPEAKER_01]: She was described as an excellent student who loved preschool, loved driving her power wheels escalate or her scooter.
49:09
[SPEAKER_01]: Little Neveia also loved her stuffed animals, specifically a black lab named tank and a beagle named Harley.
49:16
[SPEAKER_01]: She was a tomboy who loved trucks, motorcycles, and to watch the jungle book over and over.
49:22
[SPEAKER_01]: She would be 22 years old today.
49:25
[SPEAKER_01]: It's beyond time for justice.
49:29
[SPEAKER_01]: And that my friends is all I've got for this week.
49:31
[SPEAKER_01]: Be sure to join me next Thursday for an all new episode.
49:35
[SPEAKER_01]: In the meantime, you can find me on Instagram at least under score of these or my Facebook at least of these podcasts.
49:41
[SPEAKER_01]: And if you're sick of that interruptions, I've got good news for ya.
49:45
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49:50
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49:57
[SPEAKER_01]: Head on over to Patreon.com slash least of these to support the show today.
50:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you for listening.
50:03
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you for caring.
50:04
[SPEAKER_01]: If you know something, say something.
50:06
[SPEAKER_01]: And until next time, be good to each other.
50:50
[SPEAKER_01]: Y'all, it is absolutely heartbreaking that so many known, like these people were known pedophiles, and they had access to this beautiful little girl.
51:00
[SPEAKER_01]: Jennifer Buchanan said she believed in second chances, but first of all, this wasn't George Kennedy or any of the other second chance.
51:09
[SPEAKER_01]: They'd had multiple arrests over years.
51:12
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, that displays a pattern of behavior that indicated they were in no way shape or form that to be anywhere near a child.
51:19
[SPEAKER_01]: Like their criminals and bad guys, and then there are pedophiles.
51:24
[SPEAKER_01]: The fact that this little girl was referring to a known Pito as Daddy George, gives me the Heepy Cheapies.
51:31
[SPEAKER_01]: And let me make it clear.
51:33
[SPEAKER_01]: That's on the adults in Nevada's life completely.
51:36
[SPEAKER_01]: Whether or not it turns out that George Kennedy, or any of the others, had anything to do with Nevada's murder.
51:42
[SPEAKER_01]: These random ass Pito's should have never been allowed contact with her, like none at all.
51:48
[SPEAKER_01]: And if you ask me, the adults in her life that allowed that should have been charged at the very least with child endangerment, this isn't a case where it wasn't known exactly what these men were.
52:01
[SPEAKER_01]: There was a mixed reaction after Jennifer appeared on Nancy Grace.
52:04
[SPEAKER_01]: Some people thought that maybe Nancy was too harsh.
52:07
[SPEAKER_01]: But like I said, I think she was just saying what we're all thinking.
52:11
[SPEAKER_01]: And you can have your opinion on Nancy Grace and that's fine.
52:14
[SPEAKER_01]: But what I will tell you from personal experiences that Nancy does all kinds of things behind the scenes to help victims families.
52:21
[SPEAKER_01]: I've witnessed it firsthand with a family I represented.
52:24
[SPEAKER_01]: She provided resources we needed and couldn't get from the local police.
52:28
[SPEAKER_01]: And Miss Nancy Grace did it without any fanfare, and she wanted no credit.
52:33
[SPEAKER_01]: She's tough because she cares, and I'll forever love me some Nancy Grace.
52:38
[SPEAKER_01]: I do believe this case is completely solvable.
52:41
[SPEAKER_01]: It seems police already have their suspicions.
52:43
[SPEAKER_01]: I would love to know what those suspicions are.
52:46
[SPEAKER_01]: But so far, nothing has been made public.
52:49
[SPEAKER_01]: It's frustrating sometimes, especially for the family when the police think they know, but they still don't have enough to charge.
52:56
[SPEAKER_01]: But we have to remember, they only get one by to the apple, and there's no way in hell you want to bring charges, only for them to not stick in a child murder to get off Scott free.
53:06
[SPEAKER_01]: But somebody out there has the information that will bring this killer to justice.
53:11
[SPEAKER_01]: I think it's only a matter of time.
53:13
[SPEAKER_01]: And you can be $50,000 richer.
53:15
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, you can take a monster off the street and get that bag in the process.
53:20
[SPEAKER_01]: Seems like a win-win to me.
53:25
[SPEAKER_01]: Before I go tonight, I just want to let you all know the reason for me not being here over the past
53:36
[SPEAKER_01]: If you followed for a while, you've probably heard me talk about my little gray hair grainy.
53:41
[SPEAKER_01]: My BFF and the woman who was highly influential throughout my entire life.
53:46
[SPEAKER_01]: She's the one responsible for some of the funnier things I say on this podcast, like that's enough to gag a maggot, or that makes about as much sense as tits on a bull.
53:55
[SPEAKER_01]: I learned all those, and many, many more from her.
53:59
[SPEAKER_01]: I wouldn't be the person I am today without her.
54:05
[SPEAKER_01]: She taught me a love mustard greens and most importantly, Jesus, and she was literally one of my favorite human beings on planet.
54:16
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, I'm gonna get through this y'all.
54:19
[SPEAKER_01]: I spent my weekend taking care of her and always look forward to my granny weekend.
54:23
[SPEAKER_01]: My mom, sister, sister, and long night took turns staying with her ever since she needed around the clock hair.
54:29
[SPEAKER_01]: Earlier this year, her health took a decline.
54:32
[SPEAKER_01]: She was put on hospice and I spent as much time as I could soaking up what we both knew were her last days.
54:38
[SPEAKER_01]: We threw a huge Easter celebration.
54:41
[SPEAKER_01]: We made like 1,700 pounds of potato salad, and some lemon-posset, just because she wanted to try the Queen's favorite dessert.
54:49
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't even know if I'm pronounced in that correctly, but let me tell you it was good.
54:53
[SPEAKER_01]: We got chickens.
54:54
[SPEAKER_01]: Barbara Jean was her favorite little chick, and I brought her to visit at least three times a day.
54:59
[SPEAKER_01]: We told stories.
55:00
[SPEAKER_01]: We had sleepovers.
55:03
[SPEAKER_01]: may or may not have taught in a little trash about a local scandal at a restaurant.
55:07
[SPEAKER_01]: Some of y'all might know what I'm talking about, but I'm not going to go there.
55:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Anyhow, needless to say, we had a big and grand time and then on Thursday, April 30th, 2,026 at 5, 12 p.m. My little grand went home to be with Jesus.
55:29
[SPEAKER_01]: And I've never been so heartbroken and happy all at the same time.
55:34
[SPEAKER_01]: My heart was so happy for her.
55:36
[SPEAKER_01]: I know exactly where she is.
55:38
[SPEAKER_01]: I know she was greeted with the words, well done, good and faithful servant.
55:42
[SPEAKER_01]: I know that deep in my heart.
55:44
[SPEAKER_01]: I know that in every fiber of my being, she loved Jesus.
55:48
[SPEAKER_01]: Her faith was probably the strongest thing about her.
55:51
[SPEAKER_01]: And let me just tell you, that lady was the strongest one I've ever known.
55:55
[SPEAKER_01]: and her last year she struggled with her mobility, but she should have been in a wheelchair decades ago.
56:01
[SPEAKER_01]: She wasn't because she refused.
56:04
[SPEAKER_01]: She's geared the crap out of us on several occasions, but that little lady just kept going.
56:09
[SPEAKER_01]: I have such peace in my heart knowing that she never has to struggle with that again.
56:14
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm sure just as I'm sitting here that she's up there with an
56:26
[SPEAKER_01]: To be honest, my world got a little darker without her in it.
56:30
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll miss her forever, but I know how blessed this world was to have had her for 91 years, and I know how blessed I am to have had her in my corner my whole life.
56:39
[SPEAKER_01]: Y'all, she didn't even have a clue what a podcast even was, and always thought I was talking about something on the radio since I can't sing.
56:48
[SPEAKER_01]: But she supported me every step of the way, cheering me on even if she didn't have a clue what we were cheering for, and even if she was confused why we weren't rich yet if I was on the radio.
56:58
[SPEAKER_01]: I couldn't have done any of this without her, so I thought it was only fitting to give Y'all a glimpse of who this wonderful lady was.
57:05
[SPEAKER_01]: the day after we said see you later.
57:07
[SPEAKER_01]: I went looking through my phone.
57:09
[SPEAKER_01]: I thought I had saved a birthday voice melt from her.
57:12
[SPEAKER_01]: I just wanted to hear her voice.
57:14
[SPEAKER_01]: I just wanted to make sure I still had it.
57:16
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I didn't.
57:18
[SPEAKER_01]: But I had something even better.
57:19
[SPEAKER_01]: The very last voice melt saved in my phone, like the oldest voice melt in my phone was from my grand.
57:27
[SPEAKER_01]: As she aged, I helped her manage her phone internet, you know, things like that.
57:32
[SPEAKER_01]: And there on my phone was this gem of a voicemail.
57:35
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll give you just a little context.
57:38
[SPEAKER_01]: Some years back, her TV bill was over $400 for just a couple channels, her phone, and the most basic internet package.
57:45
[SPEAKER_01]: And I thought that was highway robbery.
57:47
[SPEAKER_01]: And felt like she was being taken advantage of because she was elderly.
57:51
[SPEAKER_01]: They had called her in somehow convinced her that she needed all these movie channels and all kinds of stuff.
57:57
[SPEAKER_01]: and for a lady that I know literally kept about three movies on repeat cycle, I knew she had no clue what she had signed up for.
58:04
[SPEAKER_01]: So I may or may not have lost my shit and told them that if they didn't cancel all of that and give her every dime of her money back, we'd sue and she'd own that company.
58:14
[SPEAKER_01]: My granny, who could be feisty?
58:16
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, she could be.
58:17
[SPEAKER_01]: But maybe not as feisty as I was on that phone call, looked at me from across the counter and said,
58:27
[SPEAKER_01]: We laughed and obviously the police never showed up, but I did get ugly all.
58:32
[SPEAKER_01]: Taking advantage of the elderly can get me fired up quick.
58:35
[SPEAKER_01]: And what you know even after all of that, her bill was still not fixed, which leads us to this voicemail.
58:42
[SPEAKER_01]: I will tell you that I ultimately did get the bill fixed and she remained a customer.
58:46
[SPEAKER_01]: And we never owned the company, but it was straightened out.
58:50
[SPEAKER_01]: I love you, Grand.
58:51
[SPEAKER_01]: I love you forever.
58:53
[SPEAKER_01]: Remember to save me a seat.
58:55
[SPEAKER_01]: The one.
58:58
[SPEAKER_01]: the one right next to you.
59:00
[SPEAKER_01]: Without further ado, here's my granny, Carol Jean.
59:04
[SPEAKER_00]: Leah, this is your granny at 8634946565.
59:11
[SPEAKER_00]: I have an emergency.
59:13
[SPEAKER_00]: I really need to talk to you when you have time to talk to me.
59:18
[SPEAKER_00]: Please call me back as soon as you can.
59:20
[SPEAKER_00]: We'll
59:26
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm telling you direct, KV.
59:28
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't want to own the company.
59:30
[SPEAKER_00]: I just want to get.
59:31
[SPEAKER_00]: I just would like to.
59:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, I just want for you to straighten it out for me.
59:37
[SPEAKER_00]: Thank you.
59:37
[SPEAKER_00]: I love you.
59:38
[SPEAKER_00]: Goodbye.