Kansas father who sparked amber alert for 3-year-old daughter booked for murder after her body was found
KANSAS CITY, KANSAS: The father of a three-year-old whose disappearance had sparked an Amber Alert after he reported her missing has now been arrested after police found her dead in Kansas City.
An Amber Alert had been issued for Olivia Jansen after her father, Howard Jansen III, had walked into the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department on Friday, July 10, and filed a missing person report, according to the Kansas City Star.
When questioned, Jansen, 29, told investigators that the last time he saw his daughter was at 11 pm on Thursday, July 9, when he went to sleep at his home on the 4400 Block of Gibbs Road. He said when he woke up the next morning at 5:30 am, she was gone.
Jansen said he found the door to his house was open and reported her missing three hours later because he could not find her. KCPD spokesman Tom Tomasic said they heard "several stories throughout the day" and that "none of them made sense."
As authorities continued to search the vicinity of two homes that they suspected held clues to the three-year-old's disappearance, they received a tip that a young girl's body had been found not far from 34th and Steele Road.
When they reached the scene, they positively identified the body as belonging to Olivia. It had been located in an area close to Interstate 635 where police had searched for most of the day. They did not reveal a cause of death.
"We are deeply saddened to announce that in the last 30 minutes our officers have discovered a body in the 3400 Block of Steele that we believe to be that of missing 3-year-old Olivia Jansen," police said. "We thank everyone who shared our posts and reached out with tips and offers of assistance throughout the day. For that reason, we wanted to share this information as swiftly as possible. This is not the outcome we wanted, in fact, it is the worst outcome."
Jansen was subsequently arrested on suspicion of child abuse of unknown circumstance and first-degree murder and is being held without bond, according to Wyandotte County Jail booking logs. However, the 29-year-old has not been formally charged. Officer Dustin Dierenfeldt, with the KCPD, revealed that Olivia's mother is currently incarcerated on unrelated charges.
Holli Denney, who was at the scene when police identified Olivia's body, told the Kansas City Star that she was a friend of the family and that she doesn't know if the young girl's mother knows of her death. "I wouldn’t be able to imagine the heartbreak that her mom is feeling," she said.
Perry Goin, another family friend, similarly said he was finding it difficult to deal with Olivia's death. "It just tears you in half. I don't even know what to think," he told KMBC. "It's the biggest shock ever. I don't understand."
The case is still under investigation by the Criminal Investigation Division. Anyone with information has been encouraged to call the Kansas City, Kansas, police at 913-596-3000 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.