Scioto County infant’s body was in well for weeks
Dylan Groves was taken from his parents by Scioto County Children Services shortly after he was born Jan. 10 because illicit drugs were found in his system.
He eventually was given back to his father as part of a Children Services reunification program. Dylan was never seen by agency officials again.
The body of the infant boy was found Tuesday in a 30-foot-deep well on vacant private property directly across the road from Mount Hope Bible Camp, 3162 Mount Hope Road in Union Township near Otway village. The site is about two miles from the parents’ residence on Mount Hope Road.
Jessica Groves, 39, and Daniel Groves, 41, were arrested Monday on multiple charges, including kidnapping, abduction and interference with custody of a child. Additional charges are expected to be filed against the couple in the near future following further investigation and the presentation of the case to a county grand jury.
Sheriff Marty Donini said Thursday that detectives found out from the father Tuesday during their investigation that the boy had died in late March. What took children services at least five weeks to contact the sheriff’s office for assistance, and the sheriff’s office more than five weeks after that to obtain a search warrant for the Groves’ residence, remained unclear Thursday following interviews with officials.
Lorra Fuller, director of Scioto County Children Services, said in an interview Thursday with The Dispatch that her agency continued to have legal custody of Dylan but the child was placed with Daniel Groves on a trial basis.
Fuller declined to give The Dispatch the date when the child was given back to the Daniel Groves Jessica Groves
father, claiming it could have an effect on the investigation.
Soon after Daniel Groves took the child, Fuller said he began missing court dates, home visits and doctor appointments. The agency made multiple attempts to contact the Groveses about Dylan but were unsuccessful, she said. Fuller declined to specify how many attempts were made, again citing the investigation.
Children services thought the child was alive “based on the fact that there hadn’t been any contact with the family,” Fuller said.
According to arrest records from Portsmouth Municipal Court, the couple kept the infant hidden and refused to take him back to children services although they knew the child was supposed to be returned.
A case worker from Scioto County Children Services asked the sheriff’s office to help find the child on May 3. Deputies and children services said they made multiple attempts to locate the father and the boy but were unsuccessful. Neither agency would say how many attempts were made or when.
On May 20, deputies went to the parents’ trailer home on Mount Hope Road but Daniel and Jessica Groves fled on a four-wheeler into a wooded area.
Three weeks later, the sheriff’s office obtained a search warrant for the residence and property.
Jessica Groves was taken into custody Monday without incident. But Donini said Daniel Groves barricaded himself inside his trailer and refused to come out.
About six hours later, after the State Highway Patrol’s Special Response Team joined deputies at the scene, Daniel Groves surrendered without incident and was arrested.
After interviewing Daniel Groves, “We found out late Monday that we weren’t going to be able to find the child alive,” Donini said. “It was going to be more of a recovery of remains.”
Donini said Groves told them Dylan was dead but initially led them “on a wild goose chase” Tuesday, giving police the wrong location of the child’s body. Deputies first searched a wooded area and found nothing. Eventually, detectives learned Dylan’s remains were in the well.