Missing 11-Month-Old Boy Found Buried Alive in Dog Crate After Father’s Arrest — Searchers Hear Crying Beneath the Dirt

An 11-month-old baby boy was found alive inside a buried dog crate in South Carolina after disappearing while in his father’s care, prompting an urgent search involving nearly 100 law enforcement officers and emergency responders.

The child, identified as Koah Sharpe, was discovered on Tuesday, November 10, after authorities spent more than 24 hours trying to locate him. Investigators believe he had been buried underground inside the crate, wrapped in a towel.

His father, 25-year-old Michael Comer, had already been arrested the previous night on a burglary charge. The baby was not with him when officers took him into custody.

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The disappearance began on Monday afternoon, when Comer reportedly arrived at a home where his mother was looking after Koah. She left the baby in his care while another caregiver was on the way. By the time that person arrived, both Comer and the child had disappeared.

A member of the family reported Koah missing at around 3 p.m. Authorities said the boy had last been seen with his father at approximately 11 a.m. near Parthenon Road in Lexington County.

Investigators believed Comer had traveled to several locations around the county, apparently relying on other people for rides because he did not have access to a vehicle.

Searchers hear a baby crying beneath freshly disturbed dirt

Comer was located late Monday night in a shed in Batesburg-Leesville and arrested on a burglary charge. But finding him did not solve the most urgent question: where was his son?

The search continued into Tuesday, involving the Lexington County Sheriff’s Office, local police, firefighters, state investigators, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Nearly 100 searchers were involved in the effort.

Authorities eventually focused on an area near the home of Comer’s father. Investigators noticed pine straw and a patch of freshly disturbed earth in nearby woods, approximately 50 yards from the property.

When searchers began probing and digging into the ground, they heard something that changed the entire operation.

It was Koah crying.

Sheriff Jay Koon described the frantic effort to reach the child as rescuers rushed to uncover the buried crate and get the baby out.

According to the sheriff, the boy had been placed inside a wire dog crate measuring approximately two feet by two feet. The crate had been wrapped in a towel and buried in a shallow grave, roughly a foot underground.

Investigators believe Koah had been trapped there for approximately 24 hours.

Koon said the towel may have created an air pocket inside the crate, allowing the baby to survive. He also suggested that cooler overnight temperatures may have played a role.

Baby rushed to hospital as father faces further charges

Koah was pulled from the ground and taken by ambulance to a hospital for medical treatment. Authorities said he was alive and crying loudly when rescuers reached him.

The sheriff described the discovery as an extraordinary outcome after such a desperate search. Officials were hopeful the child would recover, although his full medical condition had not yet been publicly detailed.

Comer remained in custody following his arrest. Investigators said he could face additional charges connected to the disappearance and the circumstances in which his son was found.

Court records also showed that Comer had recently been placed on probation after pleading guilty to aggravated breach of peace. He had also faced earlier arrests involving domestic violence and a weapons-related allegation.

Those previous cases do not establish what happened to Koah, and the investigation into the baby’s disappearance remains separate.

Authorities have not publicly established a motive for the alleged act or provided a complete account of what happened during the period the child was missing.

For the family, the immediate relief was that Koah had been found alive. What began as a missing-child emergency ended with rescuers hearing a baby’s cries beneath the earth — and a little boy being carried out of a buried crate after what authorities believe was nearly a full day underground.

Sources:  DAILYMAIL