The decomposing body of an eight-month-old baby was found hidden inside a rural Kentucky home in Ohio County after a week-long search.
Miya Rudd was last seen “in late April,” but Kentucky State Police were not reported missing until this month.
Miya’s body was found at 1:15 p.m. Friday under a pile of debris at the family home in a rural area southeast of Owensboro.
Searches were conducted in several locations, including a portion of the home’s backyard, where investigators were looking for any signs that Miya may have been there.
The decomposing body of eight-month-old Miya Tucker (pictured) was found Friday at her parents’ home in Ohio County, Kentucky. Her family hasn’t seen her ‘since the end of April’
Police say they last suspected Miya was in the care of her mother Tesla Tucker, 29, (left) and her father Cage Rudd (right). Tucker and Rudd, 30, were arrested June 6 at the Motel 6 in Owensboro, located about 25 miles from their home in Reynolds Station, on multiple felony drug charges and child neglect.
‘Is not easy. In fact, we were very optimistic, as was the rest of the community. We were hoping that maybe someone was holding this baby. “But realizing that we had cadaver dogs and how we were sorting through the debris in the backyard, we obviously knew, in the back of our minds, that the end result was not going to be too promising,” the sheriff’s deputy said. Kentucky State Trooper Corey King WDRB.
Miya Tucker was reported missing last week after state police conducted a welfare check at her parents’ Ohio County home and the baby was nowhere to be found.
The decomposing body of an eight-month-old baby was found hidden inside a rural Kentucky home in Ohio County after a week-long search.
Cadaver dogs were brought to the family residence on Tuesday to search the property and nearby woods, however there was no sign of Miya.
At the time, police said they had “no evidence that she is deceased, but no evidence that she is alive.”
The coroner at the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office in Louisville will now discover the cause of Miya’s death.
In the lead-up to the discovery of Miya’s tiny body, state police had unraveled a drug trafficking network.
Cadaver dogs were used during the search for Miya’s body over the past week.
Investigators, with the help of cadaver dogs, spent several hours searching about five acres of woods near the couple’s home earlier this week, but found no signs of Miya’s disappearance.
Miya’s grandparents, Ricky J. Smith (left) and Billie J. Smith (right), have been arrested in connection with the investigation.
Miya’s parents, Tesla Tucker, 29, and Cage Rudd, 30, have been arrested on charges including drug possession, child abuse and child neglect.
Police found them in a Motel 6 room with drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, “in plain sight.” WFIE-TV reported.
They already appeared in court this week on drug charges and will appear once next week to be arraigned on child neglect.
After their arrest, King added that they “were not very cooperative with our investigation.”
Kentucky State Police removed Miya’s three older brothers from Tucker and Rudd’s home a while ago.
Miya, whose umbilical cord tested positive for methamphetamine after her birth in October, was expected to be reunited with her siblings on May 30.
Police also arrested Miya’s paternal grandparents, Billie J. Smith and Ricky Smith, who lived with the couple.
Investigators believe Smith had been using the couple’s home as a base for drug trafficking. Fox News reported.
Police also arrested Timothy L. Roach (pictured) at Billie Smith’s home after officers saw him throw “non-prescribed” opioids under her vehicle. Roach was charged with second-degree possession of a controlled substance and first-degree prescription controlled substance not in a proper container.
Kentucky State Police removed Miya’s three older brothers from Tucker and Rudd’s home a while ago. The couple appears in the photo with one of their children.
Billie Smith was arrested on a warrant related to domestic violence, while Ricky Smith was charged with child abandonment and drug charges.
Miya’s maternal grandparents, Taletha, 50, and David Tucker, 53, have been arrested on unrelated charges out of Daviess County.
And on Thursday another arrest was made. Brodie Payne faces numerous drug charges for his role in the illegal drug operation carried out at Miya’s home.
Police also arrested Timothy L. Roach at his grandmother’s house after officers saw him throw “non-prescribed” opioids under her vehicle.
Roach was charged with second-degree possession of a controlled substance and first-degree prescription controlled substance not in a proper container.
We also took him to the Ohio County Detention Center, according to The Louisville Courier’s Diary. It is unclear what his relationship is with the family.
KSP said Miya’s body will be taken by the Ohio County Coroner’s Office and transported to the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office in Louisville.