Father Charged with Toddler's Death

Nyia Miangel Page, 23 months, was reported missing from her home at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday February 3, 2007, after her brother told his parents that she was not in her bed. There were no signs that she had walked off by herself and no signs of forced entry in the house, which family said was left unlocked. An amber alert was issued and the search had begun. Dozens of volunteers braved freezing temperatures searching for the little girl. Bloodhounds were brought in and paramedics were on stand-by in case the toddler was found and in need of medical attention. Police and volunteers searched all day. Police questioned neighbors, searched dumpsters and abandoned houses and gave polygraph tests to the toddler's father, grandfather, and uncle, whom resided with the toddler. By the end of the day, no clues had surfaced and the search was called off for the night and resumed early Sunday morning.

At 3:30 p.m. Sunday February 4, 2007, Police located the toddler's frozen body on a woody knoll in an abandoned playground about 4 blocks away from the Page household. This area was on the southeastern slopes of a public housing complex near the Rankins Bridge. The location was also near two well-worn paths, which detectives had walked along during the search. A neighbor said that the paths were also used by dog walkers and children in the area. One dog walker, Claudino DeVito, who had was in the area at the time, said, "Someone from the police told me the child was wrapped in a blanket," said DeVito. "So there was a blanket there. If it's wrapped in a blanket, I couldn't see it. The dog didn't stop anywhere. It sniffed everywhere, but it didn't stop."

The toddler was barefoot, wearing only a sweater and a diaper. There were tiny footprints in the snow near the body leading police to believe that the girl had gotten up and walked around before her death. The death was ruled a homicide because investigators determined that i the toddler could not have reached the area on her own, which included a climb of 17 snowy steps up to the wooded knoll which had old tires and rags strewn about. An autopsy was performed and it was found that Nyia Miangel Page had died from exposure and hypothermia.

A Witness reported seeing the girl's father, 23 year old William Lorenzo Page, coming from the area in which his daughter was found and entering his house. An hour later, the father was outside again, telling the witness "Somebody took my daughter". During the investigation police discovered that William Page had sexually abused another child living in the house, shortly before Nyia's disappearance. The 7 year old boy reported that during the night on Friday, February 2, 2007, William Page had entered his bedroom, covered his mouth with one hand, and touched his genitals with the other. Page then left the room, along with Nyia. Police took William Page into custody on February 4, charging his with indecent assault of a child, endangering a child's welfare because of that incident. On February 8, 2007, William Lorenzo Page, who was already in police custody, was charged with the murder of his daughter, Nyia.

Page told police that early Saturday, he had found Nyia awake and playing in front of a mirror in the hallway. Page got angry when the toddler wouldn't go back to bed, so he hit the child so hard that she hit her head and became unconscious. Page then said he wrapped Nyia in a blanket and took her outside, leaving her next to railroad tracks near an a bridge. He said Nyia was still breathing when he left her. William Lorenzo Page is being charged with criminal homicide, filing a false police report, kidnapping and simple assault. He is currently being held without bail.