This composite sketch released Thursday, Sept. 10, 2015, by the Chicago Police Department shows a toddler whose dismembered remains were found in a lagoon in Garfield Park.(Chicago Police Department via AP) (The Associated Press)
CHICAGO – The Chicago police released a sketch Thursday of a toddler whose dismembered remains were found in a park lagoon and appealed for information that could help identify the child and solve the "heinous, senseless" crime.
The drawing showed an African American child between the ages of 2 and 3 with large wide eyes and a chubby face.
"We still don't know what happened," Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy told reporters. "We're going to need help from the public. And people should be outraged."
Detectives are hoping someone will recognize the child based on the drawing. Even before its release, about 150 calls with possible tips came in for police detectives.
The child's remains were discovered over the weekend in the Garfield Park lagoon after someone reported seeing a foot floating in the water. Further searches of the murky water turned up the child's head, hands and other foot. Authorities are draining the lagoon to aid the search for the rest of the body and more evidence.
Forensic sketch artist Timothy McPhillips of the Cook County Sheriff's Office said he made the drawing after examining X-rays, coroner photographs and the remains themselves.
There are no piercings, so the child could have been male, but authorities aren't sure because the torso has not been recovered, McCarthy said.
There are no reports of any missing children in Chicago that match the case, he added.
The child's DNA is being analyzed to see if there's a familial match with anyone whose DNA is stored various law enforcement databases.
Also unclear is whether the child was murdered, because the dismemberment occurred after the death, according to the medical examiner.
McCarthy said detectives would not stop until they solved what he called a "heinous, senseless crime."
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