Timeline in Barway Collins' disappearance

April 12, 2015 at 8:12PM
Pierre Collins, far left, the father of Barway, was present to address questions about him taking out a life insurance policy on his son shortly before he disappeared.
Pierre Collins (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

timeline in case

March 18: Barway Collins is last seen when an after-school van drops him off at 4 p.m. in front of his apartment in Crystal. Police have video showing the boy saying "there's my dad" and "oh, there's my uncle" before exiting the van. Video then shows Barway looking into the lobby of his apartment complex, opening the door, then turning away.

March 19: Crystal police release statement on social media seeking public's assistance in finding Barway. Police say they have no information suggesting Barway was abducted by a stranger.

March 22: Crystal police ask for information about two people who were seen on surveillance video in the lobby of the apartment complex where Barway lives.

March 23: Community members hold a prayer vigil for Barway.

March 24: Crystal police say Pierre Collins was not truthful with them and that he is a suspect in the disappearance. That night, Collins invites media into his home and says he had nothing to do with the disappearance. A $1,000 reward is offered for information.

March 25: Reward is increased to $12,000. Investigators say they don't believe the two people seen on surveillance video in the apartment complex are connected to Barway's disappearance.

March 26: Crystal police ask the public for any video of the area where Barway was last seen. They search the Mississippi River for clues.

March 28: A community gathering and prayer service for Barway is held.

April 2: Volunteers search North Mississippi Regional Park in Minneapolis and find shoes and a backpack, items that will be analyzed by police investigators to determine any evidentiary value.

April 6: Pierre Collins' ex-wife, Jennifer Beaver, publicly calls him out as a suspect. She says Collins was "very mean to [Barway] Edwin, made threats to him, threatening to kill him."

April 7: Local Liberian leaders urge fellow Liberians to join them in support and search.

Saturday: Searchers find a child's body in the river off North Mississippi Regional Park in Brooklyn Center. Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek said identification would come from the Hennepin County medical examiner.

Sunday: Authorities confirm identity of the body as Barway Collins.

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