A body of a toddler boy was found Wednesday, and Virginia police said they believe it’s Noah Tomlin, a 2-year-old who disappeared last week from his Hampton home.
ABC News reports that officials with the Hampton Police Department announced that a boy’s body was found at a steam plant in Hampton on early Wednesday morning. Although authorities said they believe the remains are of Noah, an official identification is pending.
“At 8.50 a.m. this morning, a search team located the remains of a child we believe to be Noah Tomlin,” Hampton Police Chief Terry Sult said.
‘There are officers who are shedding tears. I was holding one of our employees in my arms this morning that was crying…… It will take time for all involved to recover and heal.”
Today brings a sense of closure in the Noah Tomlin case, but the emotional toll of this investigation will be felt by everyone involved for a long time to come. Our hearts are with our brothers & sisters at @hamptonvapolice and the entire community as we begin the healing process pic.twitter.com/docd7dv3nL
— Newport News Police (@NewportNewsPD) July 3, 2019
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Noah’s mother, 34-year-old Julia L. Tomlin was charged with with three felony counts of child neglect earlier this week, in connection with his disappearance. Charging documents indicate that there was some sort of incident that occurred on June 22, a day before Noah’s disappearance, that led police to arrest the boy’s mother.
She’s being held without bail at the Hampton County jail.
Tomlin reportedly said she put Noah to bed on June 23 at 1 a.m., but by 11:35 a.m the same morning, he was missing. Noah was last seen in his family’s home, off of the 100 block of Atlantic Avenue in Hampton, wearing a diaper and a green and white pajama shirt.
This isn’t Tomlin’s first arrest involving child neglect.
Tomlin reportedly told authorities she didn’t realize the stove was on and that the incident was accidental. She spent five months behind bars after pleading guilty to the felony charge.
According to court documents, Tomlin had five children at the time of the 2010 incident. It’s still unclear how many children were in the home when Noah vanished, but CBS 3 reports that at least four other people currently live in the home.
It’s unclear at this time whether Tomlin will face additional charges.
“That will be evaluated by the Commonwealth’s Attorney,” Sult explained. “There’s still an investigation that has to go on, including an autopsy.”
Check back with CrimeOnline as additional details become available.
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[Feature Photo: Noah Tomlin/Hampton PD]
