Jhessye Shockley Missing: Police Express Optimism Ariz. Girl Will be Found
After more than three weeks since Jhessye Shockley disappeared, investigators are continuing a strenuous search to find the little girl.
According to Phoenix, Ariz.'s New Times, Glendale police Sgt. Brent Coombs says "investigators remain optimistic that they'll find Shockley."
There has been renewed confidence of finding the 5-year-old, after the case recently received national attention on the widely viewed missing person's TV program "America’s Most Wanted" (AMW).
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Additionally, information about the child’s disappearance has been posted on AMW's website.
Still, police have admitted to finding no new leads in the Arizona case.
Accordingly, Coombs declined to address questions on whether the child's mother, Jerice Hunter, might be implicated in the case.
Hunter was sentenced to eight years in a California prison in 2006 for child abuse. The charges included the torturing of her 7-year old daughter and the infliction of physical injuries on her other children.
Since the beginning of the investigation, the family has expressed frustration that attention has been inordinately placed on Hunter instead of on the missing girl. Hunter recently stated:
"We feel that law enforcement is not active in finding Jhessye and that they're more active in persecuting me instead of finding out where she is," according to The Associated Press.
Little Jahessye Shockley was reportedly last seen by Hunter when she left the little girl in her apartment before stepping out on an errand.
Jhesseye, who is African-American, has brown eyes with shoulder length hair, and stands approximately 3 feet and 5 inches tall, when last seen.
Initially more than 100 officers and a number of volunteers searched through potential hiding places and overlooked areas, as well as focused on sex offenders, in addition to knocking on the doors of individuals in surrounding communities, in their effort to find the little girl.
Anyone with information on Jhessye Shockley is asked to call 623-930-HELP (4357).
