A week after the teenage girl vanished in Toledo, Ohio, police found her in a place her mother said she never would have gone. Her father is now charged with murder.
Toledo police discovered the body of 13-year-old Keimani Latigue on Monday, March 24, on the second floor of an abandoned house on Miami Street.
According to a report by 13ABC, the Lucas County Coroner’s Office confirmed Keimani’s identity and scheduled an autopsy for Tuesday to determine the cause of death.
Police had initially charged her father, 33-year-old Darnell Jones, with abduction on Sunday. After her body was found and confirmed, they upgraded the charge to murder.
They filed charges based on evidence from phone records, surveillance footage, and witness interviews. According to a warrant for Darnell’s arrest, he allegedly took Keimani from her home without her guardian’s consent.
He also gave “inconsistent statements about his activity with the victim” and their whereabouts to the officers. He was also the last person seen with her before she disappeared.
Darnell reportedly last brought Keimani to her mother Tiara Kasten’s home on March 15. “I seen [sic] her on the 15th. Her dad brought her down to my house,” Tiara said. “Apparently my mother gave him permission and honestly it was just loving on my kid. We play video games.”
She added that her daughter usually followed a routine — she went to school, played basketball, and came home — and had no reason to be near the vacant house where police later found her.
At the time of her disappearance, Darnell said he had seen Keimani late on March 16. “I came over here because she said that it seemed like somebody was trying to break into the house. Me and my cousin sat over here for an hour and we left around 12:30 ish,” he explained.
Before police discovered Keimani’s body, her family had spent days searching and asking for help. In a report from March 20, her grandmother, Dorothy Latigue, said the 13-year-old had never run away before. “She always calls me and asks me prior to going somewhere,” she said.
Dorothy described the teen as a “latchkey kid” who carried her own house keys and a phone to stay in contact. She said the teen was “very responsible” and capable of taking care of herself. Keimani was last seen after 10 p.m. on Sunday.
When Dorothy returned from work the next morning, she found the door unlocked. “It was Monday morning and when I came home, she wasn’t here,” the grandmother recounted.
She said Keimani was supposed to be on her way to school, but the house was in complete disarray. Growing concerned, she called the school to speak with her granddaughter and was told that Keimani was not there.
Dorothy said her granddaughter’s keys and glasses were still at the house and noted that the teen couldn’t see clearly without them. She also noticed the stove was on and could smell gas.
“Other than her and I, it’s just two dogs in the house. So, who cut it on? So that was kind of suspicious,” she said. “Her glasses in her underclothes were by the couch in the front. Her pajamas were on the dining room floor.”
In the days after Keimani went missing, search efforts focused on North Toledo, where she was last seen. On March 21, volunteers gathered near East Manhattan and Stickney, going block by block with flyers.
People from across Ohio joined in, many saying they came because they would want the same help if it were their own child.
Keimani’s mother, Tiara, traveled from Cleveland to join the search. At the time, she shared that she hadn’t slept or eaten in days and felt physically overwhelmed by the stress.
She welcomed all forms of support. “Whether it’s a social media post, whether it’s you hanging up a flyer or whether you’re just bringing up her name in conversation and making sure that people hear about her, it still makes a difference,” she said.
At the time of her disappearance, Keimani was just days from her 14th birthday. Tiara described her daughter as a “very loving, very caring” child who was deeply compassionate and brought joy to those around her.
Now, with the discovery of Keimani’s body and charges filed against her father, the investigation remains active. “Until we’re done doing the whole investigation I can’t tell you how many people are involved,” Lt. Dan Gerken of Toledo Police said.
Keimani’s case echoes another tragic incident earlier this month when a missing toddler was found dead in Oregon.
After nearly two weeks of searching, authorities confirmed on March 11 that they had discovered 2-year-old Dane Paulsen in the Siletz River, about three miles downstream from his family’s property. He had been missing since March 1.
Aerial view of bedforms and dunes at Siletz Bay estuary, Oregon, with Siletz River in the background on July 23, 2010 | Source: Getty Images
“Sadly, he was found deceased,” the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office announced in a Facebook press release, adding that investigators were processing the scene in coordination with the Lincoln County Medical Examiner’s Office. Officials said no further details were available at the time.
According to the sheriff’s office, volunteer diver Juan Heredia from Angels Recovery Dive Team assisted in the search after connecting with authorities. Guided by a local river expert, he searched areas downstream from locations already covered by sheriff’s office divers and discovered the child at approximately 11:13 a.m.
Following the discovery, authorities expressed sadness over the loss. “Our thoughts are with the family, who are facing an unbearable sorrow,” Sheriff Adam Shanks said.
He also expressed gratitude for the dedication of search teams and community members during the challenging search while lamenting the tragic outcome. The sheriff’s office confirmed that Paulsen’s family has been notified.
“Out of respect for the family’s privacy during this profoundly difficult time, we ask the public and media to respect their need for space and time to grieve,” the statement read.
Before Paulsen was found, authorities led a massive search effort with help from multiple agencies, search and rescue teams, and community volunteers. In a March 2 press release, the sheriff’s office said teams had searched 382 acres and 283 miles in the first 24 hours, using drones, K9 units, divers, and watercraft.
Investigators initially looked into a report of an unfamiliar vehicle and an adult male spotted near a bridge close to the family’s home around the time Paulsen went missing. However, after following up on a community tip, authorities located both the individual and the vehicle, and later determined they were “no longer a point of interest.”
The sheriff’s office stated that Paulsen’s disappearance did not qualify for an Amber Alert, but updates would be provided through FlashAlert and social media. They also noted there was no evidence of criminal activity at that time.
