TIMELINE: How the Hershall Creachbaum Jr. investigation unfolded

Credit: Video by Bryant Billing / Edited by David Sherman

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In the days since Dayton police found the presumed remains of 7-year-old Hershall Creachbaum Jr., a non-verbal autistic boy, investigators learned that what initially started as a missing person case may have been a homicide committed weeks earlier.

The boy was reported missing in July, but during an interview with Hershall’s mother and her boyfriend detectives realized he likely hadn’t been seen in over a month.

Here’s a timeline of the case.

ExploreWhat we know now: Dayton police continue to investigate after 7-year-old boy reported missing, body found

Late May

  • Hershall’s mother, Ashley Johnson, told police her son died sometime in late May when she was hospitalized, according to Dayton Municipal Court records. Her boyfriend, Michael Kendrick, reportedly told her the boy died of natural causes. Johnson never saw Hershall after she came home.
  • During an interview with detectives, Kendrick said he was in an argument on the phone while drinking when he punched Hershall in the head twice, according to court documents. He reportedly shoved him and struck other parts of the boy’s body.
  • Hershall allegedly died the next day.
  • Kendrick told investigators he kept the boy in the home until he started to smell, according to an affidavit. Kendrick used a suitcase to move Hershall’s body to a grass field. After a few weeks he reportedly returned and put the bones in a bag and left them in the 100 block of McClure Street.
ExploreCourt records: Mother claimed to see 7-year-old son day before he was reported missing in Dayton

July 12

  • Around 3:45 a.m. Kendrick called 911 and reported a man punched him and took Hershall, according to Montgomery County Regional Dispatch Records. The dispatch log noted Kendrick sounded intoxicated.
  • At 4:20 a.m. the dispatch log is updated to say there is no indication Hershall was taken, but he is missing.
  • At approximately 8 a.m. Dayton police posted on social media asking for the public’s help locating Hershall.
  • Johnson and Kendrick were taken to the Public Safety Building for an interview with detectives. Johnson initially claimed she saw Hershall playing with his sister the day before, but later admitted he died sometime in late May, according to court records. Kendrick reportedly guided investigators where he left Hershall’s remains.
ExploreLISTEN: Man reports 7-year-old Dayton boy missing: ‘A tattooed man, he just ran away with my baby’
  • Kendrick is arrested and booked into the Montgomery County Jail.
  • Around 7:22 p.m. Dayton police posted an update on social media that a deceased juvenile believed to be Hershall was been found. His remains were located on McClure Street near U.S. 35.

July 14

  • Dayton police held a press conference announcing Kendrick was charged with three counts of tamping with evidence and one count of gross abuse of a corpse and that Johnson was arrested. Police Chief Kamran Afzal said the investigation is ongoing and additional charges could be filed as the case continues.
ExploreChief: Dayton boy reported as kidnapped believed to have been dead for weeks

July 15

  • Kendrick appeared electronically in municipal court and a magistrate set bond at $2 million. His next hearing was scheduled for July 22.

July 16

  • Johnson was charged with one count of obstructing justice in municipal court. Her bond was set at $250,000 and her next hearing was scheduled for July 24.
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