A missing two-year-old has been found dead after his body was spotted in the mouth of an alligator.
Taylen Mosley was reported missing on Thursday after his mother, 20-year-old Pashun Jeffery, was found dead in her apartment in St Petersburg, Florida.
She had been stabbed multiple times, police said on Friday.
The child’s father, Thomas Mosley, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, police chief Anthony Holloway said.
The child was found near Dell Holmes Park, which is close to Lake Maggiore, almost 10 miles from his mother’s apartment, the police chief added.
A detective shot and killed the alligator.
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“We didn’t want to find him this way, but at least we can bring some closure to that family now,” Mr Holloway said at a news conference.
Family members saw Jeffery and her child on Wednesday, and on Thursday, they asked an apartment manager to check when they couldn’t reach her, police said.
A search for the boy included dogs, a drone, and federal and state law enforcement agencies.
The boy’s cause of death will be determined by the medical examiner.
Thomas Mosley checked himself into a hospital and had cuts on his arms and hands, the police added.
He was still in hospital on Friday but did not speak to detectives and requested a lawyer, according to police.
