(05-03-2002) - There's still no sign of Little Jahi Turner this morning. The 2-year-old has been missing for more than a week. Police investigators and U.S. Marines searched non-stop through the night at the Miramar landfill for any clue that might help them find the toddler.
Officials say they'll remain at the landfill for "as long as it takes" to sift through tons of debris picked up from the area where the boy was alleged to have disappeared. Jahi's stepfather says he left the toddler at a Balboa Park playground for about 15 minutes on Thursday, April 25. Tieray Jones says the boy was gone when he returned.
However, some reports have said authorities now believe the boy was never in the park. But police have declined to confirm or deny it.
In the past eight days of investigating the abduction, police have found inconsistencies in 23-year-old Jones' story, and results from a lie-detector test indicated deception.
He told police he left the boy alone in a playground for about 15 minutes while he went to get a soda from a vending machine about 150 yards away. When he returned, he said, the boy was gone.
But the Union-Tribune reported that evidence technicians found no fingerprints from Jahi on the playground equipment, such as the swings or the slide, indicating the boy likely had not played there recently.
Homicide detectives questioned Jones extensively on Wednesday, and for the first time confronted him about inconsistencies in his story.
Apparently, Tieray Jones is no stranger to police investigations and has a relatively extensive criminal history. Investigators in Maryland have also confirmed that Jones has been questioned about a murder that happened in August of 2000. At this point the case is still unsolved, but Jones is still one of many possible suspects.
Police are also still trying to locate the woman in the composite sketch that Tieray Jones described as being at the playground with two children, just before Jahi disappeared.
They say the woman they spoke with last Tuesday, was not the right person.
Police are asking the woman and any other witnesses who were in or around the park to come forward and contact them at (619) 744-9521.
There are currently no suspects in Jahi's disappearance.
At the time of his disappearance, Jahi had been living in San Diego for less than a week in off-base Navy housing near the park. Before April 21, he was living with his grandmother in Maryland.
Hundreds of volunteers have been trying to help any way they can in the search for Jahi, from searching the canyons of South Park and Golden Hill to passing out flyers with Jahi's picture in the streets of downtown.
If you would like to help in the search for Jahi Turner, call (619) 570-1070. Volunteers are meeting at 8 a.m. at the San Diego Moose Lodge, located at 1648 30th Street in Golden Hill.
Jahi Turner is described as:
Light-skinned African-American
Approximately 30 inches tall
Approximately 30 pounds
Black hair
Turner was wearing a blue, long-sleeve Winnie the Pooh t-shirt, blue nylon pants with an orange drawstring and gray tennis shoes at the time of his disappearance.
Anyone with information on the case is urged to call the San Diego County CrimeStoppers' anonymous tip line at (619) 235-8477 or the SDPD at (619) 531-2000.
Police Department spokesperson Dave Cohen said that informants could be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000.
And local resident, David Curry, is offering a $10,000 reward for the person who safely returns Jahi to his family.
Curry also gave $1,000 to Jahi's mother to help with expenses.