The woman, who released a hand-written letter to the media pleading for her 10-year-old son’s safe return, was also accused of “coaching” the victim’s siblings — telling them what to say in interviews with authorities about his disappearance.
Six days after a 10-year-old boy was reported missing by his parents, his body was found buried.
Now, his mother has been arrested in connection with his death, after previously claiming he vanished in the middle of the night.
According to the Kentucky State Police, Felicia Gross — the 33-year-old mother of Jayden Spicer — was arrested Tuesday and charged with Manslaughter in the Second Degree, Abuse of a Corpse, Tampering with Physical Evidence and Falsely Reporting an Incident following Jayden’s death.
Her arrest came after an alleged confession from Gross herself.
Jayden’s Disappearance
The boy was first reported missing by his parents on August 6, with authorities initially saying it was believed he “left his residence during the overnight hours or early morning.” He was last seen alive the previous evening, around 9pm, by his parents, who claimed he was gone when they woke up.
Police released a photo of Jayden, describing him as being 5’1, with a slim build, blonde hair and blue eyes and wearing Sonic the Hedgehog pajamas.
The following day, a letter police said was from Gross was released to the media, pleading for help finding her son.
“We love Jayden and we wont him safe at home,” it read. “Please if anybody see my son Jayden Spicer please report it to the Jackson Police Department, thank you. We love him very much please do the right thing call the police please pray for use and my son Jayden thank you.”
As the search for Jayden continued, KSP announced that had used “numerous agency and partnership resources available, including aircraft, drone, K-9, Sonar, Fleer, and ‘boots on the ground’ search efforts” to locate the boy, to no avail.
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Gross’ Alleged Confession & Arrest
Then, on August 12, authorities announced that not only had Jayden’s body been found, but that his mother was also arrested.
“Earlier today, detectives with Kentucky State Police, Post 13 in Hazard, received new information related to the disappearance of 10-year-old Jaden Spicer,” KSP said in a statement Tuesday. “As a result, investigators identified a new area to search in a heavily wooded area along Canoe Road in the Jackson community of Breathitt County. Detectives responded to the location and initiated a search. Shortly thereafter, at approximately 3:00 P.M., the remains of Jaden Spicer were discovered buried at the scene.”
His remains — found in what was described as a shallow grave — have been transported to the medical examiner for an autopsy.
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Per Law&Crime, citing an arrest citation, Gross came clean in an interview with police.
“[S]he confessed to providing Jayden a type of sleeping medication,” wrote police. “Ms. Gross further stated that this medication caused Jayden to have a medical emergency and she believed that he had passed away from this medical emergency.”
“Ms. Gross further stated in the interview that she had transported Jaydens body to a wooded area on Canoe Road near the mouth of Joe Little Fork,” the docs added. “A search warrant was prepared and executed on this property and Jayden’s remains were located buried underground in a plastic tote.”
Gross also allegedly “admitted to ‘coaching'” two of Jayden’s siblings on “what to say” during an interview with authorities at a child advocacy center before her confession.
“I would like to take a moment to thank the many different organizations that assisted in the search efforts for Jaden,” Trooper Matt Gayheart said in a statement. “All of the volunteers that spent numerous hours and days trying to locate him. Thank you to every person that sent tips or even shared a social media post. Thank you for the many prayers that were prayed, and we ask that you continue to pray for a community that grieves during this tragic loss.”
Gross remains behind bars at the Kentucky River Regional Jail.
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