LAURINBURG – The four-day search for Raul Gonzalez (Johnson) came to a heartbreaking end early Saturday afternoon when the 4-year old’s body was recovered from a pond on the corner of Crestline and Pea Bridge roads in Laurinburg.
Gonzalez went missing when he wandered from his home on Village Drive around 11 a.m. Wednesday. Beginning that evening, the small Hasty community located on the South Carolina border was flooded with hundreds of law enforcement officers, rescue workers and volunteers who were determined to find the missing child.
On Wednesday evening, just hours after Gonzalez went missing, three different search dogs led investigators to the pond located approximately 800 yards from Gonzalez’s home. Footprints, according to authorities, belonging to what appeared to be a child were found near the pond adding to the concern that the 4-year-old fell into the water.
The land owner was gracious enough to allow the use of sonar devices and divers to look for any signs of Gonzalez in the pond. Divers from Cumberland County searched the pond thoroughly on Thursday and Friday, but were unable to find any evidence of Gonzalez’s presence.
When ground and air search teams failed to locate any sign of the missing child, investigators decided that draining the pond needed to be done before deciding the next course of action.
“As you know, we focused on a pond near his house which was searched by dive teams and we’re working to make arrangements to drain that pond to be 100 percent certain that Raul is not in there,” said Jason Kaplan, supervisory special agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation during a press conference on Friday evening.
“Whenever you do an operation like that, you want to make sure that you are working in conjunction with the land owners. There is a lot of technical equipment that needs to be used, so it takes a lot of coordination to do that.”
Early Saturday afternoon, investigators’ worst fears were confirmed when they found the body of the young boy that had been hidden in the murky water.
“For four days, you have seen an enormous amount of work go into the search for little Raul,” Scotland County Sheriff Ralph Kersey said to reporters outside of the Scotland County Courthouse. “It is with great sadness that I announce that we believe we have found the body of Raul Gonzalez Johnson in the pond off of Pea Bridge Road.”
Kersey, whose previous interviews were candid and emotional, was much more scripted in his press conference Friday evening. He stuck to the facts while reading from a tablet, and limited responses to questions by reporters. However, Saturday’s discovery returned fatigue, compassion and grief to the face and voice of the man who many Scotland County residents feel has a heart of gold.
“We have prayed,” Kersey said before pausing to gather himself. “This is the outcome that everyone feared. It’s heartbreaking.”
On Friday, both Kersey and Kaplan avoided any questions regarding the recent criminal activity by Gonzalez’s parents and focused only on questions that would help with the search.
In September of 2017, his parents were both arrested on 21 counts of charges related to the sexual assault of a child. The four-year-old was not involved in these crimes. Gonzalez’s father, Carlos Juan Gonzalez, is still incarcerated. His mother, Annie Johnson, was released when the court determined that there was not enough evidence to convict her.
From the very start of the search, Kersey was adamant that this was an instance of a child wandering off and that foul play was not involved. Now that the search is over, he continues to believe that this is the case.
“At this time, it appears to be accidental,” Kersey said. “We will continue the investigation until we have the answers to what happened to this little boy.”
There are plans to have a candlelight vigil on Monday from 5:30 to 6 p.m. at Good News Chapel on Pea Bridge Road in Laurinburg.
Visitation for Gonzalez is scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, January 30, at McDougald Funeral Home on Church Street in Laurinburg. His funeral is scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday at Northview Harvest Ministries located on Highway 401 between Laurinburg and Wagram.
Kersey has asked that anyone interested in donating to aid in the funeral expenses to please contact the Scotland County Sheriff’s Department before doing so to check the legitimacy of any GoFundMe-type accounts.
He also asks for the community to rally around the family during this difficult time.
“I ask all citizens of Scotland County to do what we do best in certain times like this, and that is to come together,” Kersey said. “The family of Raul needs our prayers and support.”
TIMELINE
Below is an updated timeline from Gonzalez’s disappearance until his discovery:
Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018
In an unrelated incident, Gonzalez wandered off from his home on Tuesday morning, but was located about 20 minutes later by his grandfather at a neighbor’s house.
Gonzalez’s oldest sister shared online that it is not uncommon for the kids to go in and out of the house and play around the property. She answered those criticizing the safety of the children stating that it is a close neighborhood where they know everyone. Gonzalez is the youngest of eight siblings, the oldest of which is a senior in high school.
Wednesday Jan. 24, 2018
Gonzalez and his youngest sister, who missed school with an illness, got into an argument that morning. Gonzalez slipped out of the house following the spat. The two children were left in the care of their grandfather who was in the kitchen cooking when Gonzalez exited the home.
Approximately 10:30 a.m., Gonzalez visited a neighbor for candy. The neighbor claims that she told him to go back home to his “papa” (Gonzalez’s grandfather), and he left.
Gonzalez’s home faces Village Drive and the neighbor he visited lives on Crestline Road. Her backyard and Gonzalez’s backyard are adjacent to one another. Also, there is a dirt road located next to the young boy’s home that connects Crestline Road to Village Drive. This means that Gonzalez never actually had to walk on or along either road to travel between the two homes.
Gonzalez’s grandfather contacted authorities when he failed to locate Gonzalez outside. Both family and the Sheriff’s Department report that Gonzalez’s grandfather searched the property for about an hour before finally contacting the police. He also contacted Gonzalez’s mother who came home from work to help with the search.
After the preliminary search by local law enforcement failed to locate Gonzalez, Kersey felt that an Amber Alert needed to be issued.
Around 3 p.m., Kersey updated the public on Gonzalez’s disappearance at a press conference and asked for the community’s help.
Law enforcement officers and volunteers began an organized search for Gonzalez. The search teams, including K-9s, canvassed nearby wooded areas and buildings in hopes to find Gonzalez.
Three different search dogs individually led investigators from the boy’s home to a nearby pond. The pond is located on the opposite side of Crestline Road and is about 800 yards away from Gonzalez’s home.
The search continued throughout the night.
Thursday, Jan. 25, 2018
Hundreds of volunteers joined in the search along with K-9s, drones and helicopters. The search party included members of law enforcement, fire and rescue offices from all over North Carolina, South Carolina and even a group from Virginia.
Around midday, a dive team from Cumberland County began searching the pond. They searched the pond for several hours, but were unable to locate any sign of Gonzalez.
The search area’s two mile radius was extended slightly. At this time, officers were still working under the assumption that Gonzalez had wandered off. The fact that Gonzalez was barefooted, combined with the frigid temperatures from the night before, did not give the Sheriff’s Department much reason to believe that he could have travelled very far on foot.
Approximately 6 p.m., Kersey held a press conference at Stewartsville Volunteer Fire Department on Johns Road in Laurinburg approximately four miles from Gonzalez’s home. In the press conference, Kersey shared with the media and the community that they do not feel like the family was involved.
“There is nothing that we have found in the interviews that we have done with the family members, with the next door neighbors, or the information that is being provided from the public that would indicated that we are dealing with foul play,” Kersey said. “The most reliable information that we have had is the information that has been given to us by our K-9s.”
Kersey also stated that the FBI had reached out and offered assistance and he expressed his appreciation.
“The divers have just finished clearing the pond that they were searching on the corner of Crestline and Pea Bridge Road. The child was not located in that pond,” Kersey reported to media and volunteers at the press conference. “I want to drain the pond. I’m not going to leave with any doubt in my mind. It’s not that the divers didn’t do a good job, but as a small child that weighs only 35 pounds, if we don’t drain it, then that doubt will always be there.”
The focus shifted from search and rescue to more of an investigative approach.
“Right at this moment, the Sheriff’s Department along with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and FBI has shift our part from a search and rescue to more of an investigative approach,” Kersey said Thursday night. “A very proactive investigative approach.”
The search continued overnight again. Around 7 p.m., another round of officers came in to relieve those that searched throughout the day. They continued looking for Gonzalez all night.
Friday, Jan. 26, 2018
The ground search continued and focus was returned to the pond at the corner of Crestline and Pea Bridge roads. Dive teams re-entered the water, but were unsuccessful.
North Carolina State Highway Patrol set up road blocks in the neighborhood to ask drivers for their assistance in finding Gonzalez.
Early in the afternoon, an FBI poster was released to the public changing Gonzalez’s last name from “Johnson” to “Gonzalez,” and changing his race from Native American to biracial (Native American and White-Hispanic).
Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018
Around 10:30 a.m., investigators began draining the pond emptying the water into a nearby field.
According to Kersey, the pumps were stopped around 1:45 p.m. when Gonzalez’s body was discovered in the water.
Around 2:45 p.m., most social media and news stations were reporting rumors that Gonzalez was discovered in the pond.
At 5 p.m., Kersey and other investigators confirmed the discovery at a press conference at the Scotland County courthouse.
The Richmond Observer will continue to update this story as new details emerge.
