KANSAS CITY — A 10-year-old boy who left his home during the night while sleepwalking was found dead Thursday afternoon in a pond about a mile from his house, Kansas City police said.
Officials pulled the child from the water near the Briarcliff Village shopping center about 12:30 p.m., Capt. Jake Becchina, a Kansas City Police Department spokesman, told media outlets. Emergency crews attempted life-saving measures, but the boy was pronounced dead at the scene.
What authorities are telling the public
Police said there were no immediate signs of foul play. The cause of death has not been determined; a medical examiner will conduct an autopsy to establish how the boy died, officials said.
- Location: Pond near Briarcliff Village shopping center, Kansas City.
- Time found: About 12:30 p.m. Thursday.
- Distance from home: About one mile south of where he was last seen.
- Investigation status: Ongoing; autopsy pending.
Family background and community response
Family members told local television station KMBC that the child, identified as Jackson S. Georgari in media reports, had a history of sleepwalking and did not know how to swim. Relatives said the boy had previously wandered while sleepwalking when the family lived in San Diego and was found safe after that earlier incident.
“The first time it happened was when we were in San Diego, and he (sleepwalked) and then someone found him on the street and they called 911. They brought him over and he was found safely,”
The Parent Teacher Organization at Briarcliff Elementary School, where the boy attended, asked the school community to keep the family in their thoughts and extended condolences to classmates, teachers and friends.
Timeline
| Event | Approximate time |
|---|---|
| Last seen at home | About 12 hours before discovery (overnight) |
| Found unresponsive in pond | About 12:30 p.m. Thursday |
| Pronounced dead at scene | Shortly after recovery by responders |
Authorities urged anyone with information about the incident to contact the Kansas City Police Department. As the investigation continues, officials have not released additional details about how the child may have reached the pond or whether any witnesses were present.
This is a developing story, and updates will be provided as more information becomes available from investigators and the medical examiner.
