A 1-year-old “miracle baby” survived two days in a ditch along a Louisiana highway, just miles from where the body of his 4-year-old brother was found, authorities said.
The children’s mother, Aaliyah N. Jack, was arrested at a Mississippi train station “trying to get out of town,” Calcasieu Sheriff Stitch Guillory said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
Louisiana authorities were alerted Monday afternoon about a body found in the water behind the Vinton Welcome Center, a rest stop in Calcasieu Parish. The body was identified as that of a 4-year-old child.
The cause of death has not been determined.
Guillory said deputies sent out a news release asking for help identifying the child. One person contacted the sheriff’s office and said they had not seen some of his family members and believed the child could be related to him.
During the investigation, authorities learned that the 4-year-old boy was last seen with Jack and his 1-year-old brother. The sheriff’s office did not release the names of the children.
An alert was issued to nearby law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for Jack, the sheriff said, and an arrest warrant was issued for failure to report a missing child.
Jack was arrested Monday night by Meridian, Mississippi police officers without his 1-year-old son. Meridian police declined to comment on the case.
The 1-year-old was found alive Tuesday morning after a truck driver spotted the baby on Interstate-10. NBC affiliate KPLC of Lake Charles reported the ditch was just a few miles from the 4-year-old’s body.
Guillory said the video showed the baby crawling toward the highway.
“We looked at this 1-year-old boy as our miracle baby because he was still alive. Unbelievable,” said the sheriff. “This boy spent two days exposed to the weather on the side of the highway. Thank God that truck driver saw him.”
The baby suffered some insect bites but is “in good spirits,” the sheriff told reporters. He was taken to the hospital for evaluation and will be in the custody of child protective services.
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