(LEAGUE CITY, TEXAS) On Sunday morning (3/10/2024) the missing 7-year old Murfreesboro child was found in League City, Texas. 7-year-old Iris Crum smiled after being located safely in League City, Texas--a Houston suburb.
“She looks as happy as can be,” Rutherford County Sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Joseph Duncan said after viewing a picture sent to him by the Texas Rangers and League City Police who helped locate Iris. “She is smiling from ear-to-ear while awaiting her dad to pick her up.”
Charged in the disappearance of the child were Ethan Czereda, who is the stepfather and Khaila Czereda, the child's mother, both of whom lived in Walter Hill (See photo below, L to R: Ethan Czereda, the husband of Khaila Czereda, the non-custodial mother of Iris Crum, both of Walter Hill).
Khaila Czereda of Walter Hill (above right) - Iris’ non-custodial mother, Khaila Czereda, was taken into custody on charges of felony child abduction from San Diego County, Calif., and custodial interference from Rutherford County. League City is a Houston suburb.
Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh said, “I am very proud of our detectives and other law enforcement partners for the dedication and tenacity for following all leads and information to bring Iris home.”
Iris was reported missing March 1, 2024 and was believed to be with her mother from Rutherford County. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation sent out an endangered child alert March 2. Based on new information, TBI upgraded the case to an Amber Alert Friday.
Duncan said sheriff’s detectives and deputies interviewed Khaila Czereda’s husband, Ethan, Saturday. “We used investigative leads to gain information Iris was at a home in Texas,” Duncan said. “The Texas Rangers and police there apprehended Khaila and returned Iris to safety.”
Ethan Czereda of Walter Hill (above left) - 33-year-old Ethan Czereda of Fall Parkway near Walter Hill was charged with felony aggravated kidnapping, accessory after the fact and false report/information to officers. He is being held on $75,000 bond at Rutherford County Adult Detention Center.
A hearing on his charges is set May 13, 2024 in General Sessions Court. “It was a team effort between TBI, the Sheriff’s Office, Texas officers and partner law enforcement agencies across the country,” Duncan said. “We worked a lot of hours but we have her safe.”
Duncan thanked everyone who called in tips that detectives followed. “I am very thankful for everyone who called,” Duncan said.
Link to earlier WGNS news stories about the search for 7-year-old Iris Crum:
- https://www.wgnsradio.com/article/86201/update-missing-child-located-amber-alert-canceled
- https://www.wgnsradio.com/article/86155/search-continues-for-missing-child-iris-crum-in-rutherford-county
- https://www.wgnsradio.com/article/86107/tbircso-issued-endangered-missing-child-alert-on-murfreesboro-girl
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