Sheriff Tears Up as Missing 3-Year-Old Elijah Vue’s Family Begs for Help
“Everybody’s seen that kid’s photo,” he said. “It’s pulling at everybody’s heartstrings. We need to find him.”
Two Rivers Police Department
The grandmother of a 3-year-old Wisconsin boy who vanished last week spoke out publicly for the first time Tuesday at an emotional press conference about the ongoing search for Elijah Vue.
Vue was reported missing in Two Rivers on the morning of Feb. 20 by Jesse Vang, the boyfriend of the toddler’s mother, who told police she’d sent her son to stay with Vang so he could teach the 3-year-old “how to be a man,” according to a criminal complaint filed in Manitowoc County.
Vang told police he’d taken a nap and woke up that morning to find that Vue was gone.
Both Vang and Vue’s mother, Katrina Baur, have been locked up on charges of child neglect in the wake of Elijah’s disappearance. At a Tuesday evening press conference, police said they would not be commenting on the cases against Baur and Vang.
“A child missing for any amount of time is everyone’s worst nightmare,” Two Rivers Police Chief Ben Meinnert told reporters. “That’s why we’re here today. Elijah, a 3-year-old boy, has been missing for a week today. For the past week, we utilized hundreds of resources and worked around the clock in our attempts to bring Elijah home,” he said, adding that drones, helicopters, and canines had been used to search all across Manitowoc County.
Vue’s grandmother, who was not named at the press conference, spoke through sobs as she thanked search and rescuers and begged them not to give up.
Get the best of The Beast delivered right to your inbox
By clicking “SUBSCRIBE” you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
“Continue, don’t stop, searching for my baby Elijah,” she said. “We want him to be safe and with my family.”
Elijah’s aunt described him as “a joyful and curious boy, full of life and love.” She appealed for anyone with information on his whereabouts to come forward, saying: “He is a precious child who deserves every chance of happiness and his absence is deeply felt by all who know him and love him.”
Elijah is of Hmong and white ethnicity with dark brown hair and brown eyes, police say, and he was last seen in gray pants, a dark long-sleeve shirt, and red-and-green dinosaur slip-on shoes.
On top of a $1,000 reward offered by the Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers, the FBI is now also offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to Elijah’s whereabouts or the arrest of anyone responsible for his disappearance.
Manitowoc County Sheriff Dan Hartwig, who closed out the press conference with one final plea to the public for information, appeared to fight back tears as he thought of the missing 3-year-old: “Everybody’s seen that kid’s photo,” he said. “It’s pulling at everybody’s heartstrings. We need to find him.”
See more of our coverage in your search results.
Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.