Bryscon Malik Gaddis, 20, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of a young child, whose body was found near a dumpster in a Panorama City parking lot on Saturday morning, police said.
Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD) Mission Division responded to a radio call at around 7 a.m. on Sunday and discovered the body of 5-year-old Elyjiah Hearn in the 8200 block of Van Nuys Boulevard near Titus Street, authorities said in a statement.
A homeless man reportedly found the child and had someone call 911 for help.
“No one deserves to be handled in this manner,” said LAPD Det. Meghan Aguilar. “To be left [outside] and discovered by a stranger is absolutely horrible.”
LA Fire Department personnel attempted but could not resuscitate the young boy and pronounced him dead, LAPD said.
The LA Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to release an autopsy report, and Elyjiah’s cause of death is still unknown. However, the young boy suffered “massive injuries” including a fractured jaw, fractured ribs and a lacerated liver, according to a law enforcement official.
Detectives from LAPD’s Abused Child Unit assumed the investigation.
Gaddis was taken into custody by officers from the LAPD Hollywood Station and was being held on $2 million bail, according to police and sheriff’s jail records.
His arrest followed the detention of five people taken in for questioning on Tuesday.
“Detectives have worked tirelessly. On July 15, a tip led them to a large Panorama City apartment complex in the 14500 block of Lanark [Street],” the LAPD announced early Wednesday. “Around 9:30 p.m., a search warrant was served at one unit – two adults [one male, one female] were detained, and two children were at the unit.”
The apartment complex was less than a half-mile from where Elijah’s body was found.
At around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, while detectives were still collecting evidence, a second unit of LAPD personnel detained two more men and a woman near Sunset Boulevard and Ivar Avenue in Hollywood.
All five adults were taken in for questioning, and the LA County Department of Children and Family Services took custody of the two children, police said.
Their relationship to the child remains under investigation, according to the LAPD, which is not identifying the people detained at this time.
Troy Hearn Sr., who identified himself as Elijah’s grandfather, said that Gaddis was the ex-boyfriend of the child’s mother, Kemia Hearn, and not his father. He further accused Gaddis of kidnapping the ELijah and his mother.
“It’s very heartbreaking for him to do that to my 5-year-old grandson,” he said. “I’m identifying the body this afternoon. I’m overwhelmed and so angry that I can’t even explain it. This guy is a bad guy and it’s lucky that the police has him.”
The community is now trying to grapple with what authorities described as a “horrific” and “heinous” crime.
A woman who works in a pharmacy in the building next to where the body was found said it was difficult to come into work on Monday morning after hearing the news.
“It makes me think of my 5 year old,” she said, continuing to be haunted by the question, “When we left work on Friday, was he there?”
Neighbors held a vigil on Saturday evening, and a large memorial placed near the area where the child was found continues to attract visitors paying their respects.
“Que dios te bendiga,” “May God bless you,” said a woman before lighting a candle and adding it to the growing altar of toys, balloons, flowers and candles placed beneath a large banner that read, “justice now,” “justicia ahora.”
Bridget Ruiz, a local resident who has been in the area since she was a teenager, said she has never seen something like this. The news that it was a child moved her to visit the makeshift altar with her daughter, who placed the stuffed-animal Eeyore alongside toys and candles arranged in the shape of a heart.
“I can never understand how somebody can do this to their baby,” said Ruiz, fighting back tears as she added that her upbringing was also difficult. “I can’t help but feel for kids [in hard situations]. I just wish he had a better life, better parents.”
When Ruiz heard about what happened, she thought about the case of Gabriel Fernandez – an 8-year-old boy who died in 2013 after months of abuse and torture from his mother and her boyfriend. Fernandez’s case sparked outrage and led to the formation of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Protection, which addressed systemic failures of and recommended reforms to LA County’s child welfare system, the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and other agencies.
The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) Safe Surrender Baby Program aims to save the lives of newborn infants at risk of abandonment by encouraging parents to “safely surrender” the infant within 72 hours of birth, with no questions asked. However, parents are not afforded the same protections with older children.
For those struggling to support a child, there are many organizations in the San Fernando Valley that can help with resources and services.
“It’s sad that nobody saw [the neglect] until it was really over,” said Ruiz. “So I thought I’d just come and show him that we would have loved him.”
City News Service contributed to this article.
You can report instances of child abuse by calling the LA County Child Protective Services at (800) 540-4000.
For more information about the Safe Surrender Baby Program, call (877) 222-9723 or visit www.cdss.ca.gov/safe-surrender-baby
San Fernando Valley Family Resources:
El Nido Family Centers
elnidofamilycenters.org
(818) 830-3646
Alliance of Relative Caregivers (ARC)
allianceofrelativecaregivers.org
(818) 789-1177
Child and Family Guidance Center (CFGC)
childguidance.org
(818) 993-9311
Council for Child Abuse Prevention
childandfamilycouncil.org