Aliyah Henderson, of Cleveland, Ohio, was reportedly arrested on murder charges after the bodies of two half-sisters were found in suitcases. She was booked into the Cuyahoga County Jail on Wednesday, as per multiple reports.
Cleveland police had gotten a tip on Monday from a dog walker whose pet had detected a scent coming from a suitcase which was found in fields near an all-boys public school – Ginn Academy. When investigators reached the scene, they found another body in a suitcase nearby.
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Both the cases had been partly buried in shallow graves and authorities reportedly believe they were there for ‘some time’. The bodies were not dismembered and police chief Dorothy Todd said that the victims were both girls below the age of 14, when speaking to the press on Tuesday.
Preliminary DNA testing showed them to be half-sisters, and their causes of death are yet to be determined. Here’s all you need to know about Aliyah Henderson.
Aliyah Henderson: 5 things to know
- Henderson lived at the East 162nd Street home when police took her into custody. They executed a search warrant at a home in the 700 block of East 162nd Street, as per reports. They reportedly found ‘substantial evidence’ there. She reportedly lived across the street from where the girls were found buried.
- Henderson is 28 years old and has been charged with endangering children as well, apart from murder.
- A third child was found in Henderson’s house and has been placed in the care of the Department of Children and Family Services.
- City councilman Michael Polensek has sought accountability after the grisly discovery. “What kind of monster-demon would do this to two children? Just throw them away like they’re garbage? No, not here, not in Collinwood. That don’t happen. We’re not going to put up with that. There’s got to be justice for these two kids,” he told KJTC8.
- Given that Henderson currently faces murder charges, if she is convicted, she could get life with possibility of parole. However, if the charges were to be pushed to aggravated murder then Henderson could even face the death penalty or life in jail without parole.
Authorities have noted that locally there haven’t been reports of any missing children. However, they’re checking with state and federal partners too. They added that the investigation was in its early stages and there was no ongoing threat to the safety of the people.