A 4-year-old boy who went missing Wednesday morning under suspicious circumstances was found dead Thursday evening, according to police.
The boy, Ariel Garcia, was last seen around 7 a.m. Wednesday in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive. Everett Police said Wednesday that Garcia left the location with a family member.
Shortly before 6 p.m. Thursday, the department was notified that a body matching Garcia’s description was found outside Everett. Police did not say where the body was found. The Snohomish County Medical Examiner will confirm the identity and cause of death, police said in a news release.
Major Crimes detectives are investigating the death as a homicide, police said. There is no perceived threat to the community, police said.
An extensive, regional search involving the FBI began for the boy after he went missing Wednesday. An Endangered Missing Person Alert was sent around 6 p.m. Thursday — around the time Garcia’s body was found.
Additional information was not immediately available.
Everett Police also said the department located “a vehicle of interest,” a steel-blue 2013 Nissan Sentra SV with a Washington license plate CJC9954, in Clark County in Southwest Washington.
Anyone who saw the car Wednesday or has video footage of it is asked to call police at 425-257-8450 or e-mail tips@everettwa.gov.