http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/local/source-missing-boy-s-body-found-in-woodstock
CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. (AP) - Authorities searching for a missing 5-year-old Illinois boy who had lived in deplorable conditions dug up his body Wednesday and charged his parents with murder, sadly declaring that the youngster would "no longer have to suffer."
The body, believed to be that of Andrew "AJ" Freund, was wrapped in plastic and buried in a shallow grave in a rural area of Woodstock in McHenry County, Crystal Lake police Chief James Black said.
Black said investigators went to the site after they interviewed the boy's parents overnight and presented them with cellphone evidence. Woodstock is about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northwest of Chicago and a few miles from the family's home in Crystal Lake.
http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/local/police-interview-father-of-missing-boy
"This is not the outcome that we want to talk about ... but it is the unfortunate result," said Jeffrey Sallet, who runs the FBI in northern Illinois.
The parents, Andrew Freund Sr. and JoAnn Cunningham, each face charges of first-degree murder and other crimes. An email seeking comment was sent to Cunningham's lawyer. It wasn't immediately known if Freund has a lawyer.
The couple reported AJ missing last Thursday, telling officers they had last seen him at bedtime the previous night. Freund told a dispatcher that they'd checked "closets, the basement, the garage, everywhere," but investigators quickly knocked down the possibility of a kidnapping.
Speaking to reporters, Black had a message for AJ's relatives: "It is my hope that you may have some solace in knowing that AJ is no longer suffering and his killers have been brought to justice."
Crystal Lake police had visited the house over the years, according to records released by the department. One report described the home as littered with dog feces and urine, including a child's bedroom where the "smell of feces was overwhelming." Another report said the house was "cluttered, dirty and in disrepair," and sometimes without electricity.
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, known as DCFS, had contact with the family since AJ was born with opiates in his body in 2013. The Northwest Herald said he was in foster care for two years before being returned to his parents. A younger brother was removed from the home last week.
Black said the cause of AJ's death remains under investigation. Police removed several items from the home, including a shovel, mattress, paper bags and a plastic storage tub.
"We know you are at peace playing in heaven's playground and are happy you no longer have to suffer," the police chief said in a public message intended for the boy.
DCFS acting director Marc Smith said AJ's death was "heartbreaking."
"After a nearly week-long search for missing Andrew "A.J.” Freund, law enforcement officials today confirmed his death. This news is heartbreaking. Protecting vulnerable children who come to our attention is at the core of our mission at DCFS. All of us feel this loss. Our priority is the care and safety of Andrew’s younger sibling. We will continue to cooperate with law enforcement in their ongoing investigation. The Department is committed to conducting a comprehensive review of the entirety of our work with Andrew’s family to understand our shortcomings and to be fully transparent with the public on any steps we are taking to address the issues," Smith said in a written statement.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker in March ordered an independent review of DCFS after the deaths of a 2-year-old girl in Decatur and a 2-year-old boy in Chicago. Child welfare workers had contacts with both families.
State Sen. Julie Morrison, a Deerfield Democrat, immediately called for "an independent, comprehensive audit of the DCFS hotline."
State Sen. Julie Morrison, a Deerfield Democrat, immediately called for "an independent, comprehensive audit of the DCFS hotline.
Yeah, We'll See
https://heavy.com/news/2019/04/joann-cunningham-aj-freund-mother/ - Her Mother Filed Charges and Reported to DCFS
- Cunningham’s Mother, Lorelei Hughes, Filed a Petition Against Cunningham & Andrew Sr., Accusing Them of Neglect
In 2013, Cunningham’s mother, Lorelei Hughes, filed a petition for an order of protection for her grandson, Freund, accusing Cunningham and Andrew Sr. of neglecting him in the form of refusing to provide him medical care, food, and more.
In the document, which you can read above in full, Hughes maintained in part that Freund “was not provided food on a regular basis, eating a meal on approximately four of the seven days of the week and a remainder of the time there was no food int he house…the child was sent to school daily with no food and no money to purchase a lunch…there was no food in the residence and the child had only marshmallows and water to eat.”
- Freund Was Born With Opiates in His System; Family Services Had On & Off Contact With the Freunds From 2013-2018
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services has a long history of visits with the Freunds. Last Tuesday, after filing a Freedom of Information Act, Crystal Lake Police acquired and then released five years of police reports on the Freunds. You can read them here, though much of it is redacted.
In total, protective services visited the Freund home 17 times over five years. (Read the rest of what they found in the home) Disgusting.
- Cunningham’s Other, Younger Son Has Been Placed in Protective Custody
The Freunds have another, younger son, whose named has not been released. The boy has since been placed in protective custody.
The Grandmother Lorelei also has custody of another son that was older than AJ. She has done her part but also has been failed miserably by DCFS. 17 times they had contact with the family but here we have a Sweet Little Boy that was brutally murdered by his 2 parents. Tragic.
http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/local/letter-prosecutor-in-freund-case-has-complained-about-dcfs-1
Letter - Prosecutor In Freund Case Has Complained About DCFS
WOODSTOCK, Ill. (AP) - Records show the prosecutor in the Illinois county where a 5-year-old boy's parents are charged in his death previously complained about the state's child welfare agency.
The Chicago Tribune reports McHenry County State's Attorney Patrick Kenneally wrote a letter to Illinois Department of Children and Family Services officials nearly a year ago. In the letter, Kenneally details three other separate cases in which he alleges caseworkers failed to act or were uncooperative with his office.
Kenneally's office last week charged Andrew "AJ" Freund's parents with murder in the boy's death. Records have shown DCFS interacted with the family since AJ was born. The Crystal Lake boy was found wrapped in plastic and buried in a shallow grave.
DCFS spokesman Jassen Strokosch says the agency has been meeting with prosecutors to address the issues and welcomes "criticisms that help us do a better job."
Yeah, We'll See
Pizzagate related because again here we have DCFS failing another one of Our Children, this time causing his death. I have no words.
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carmencita ago
https://wgntv.com/2019/05/01/newly-released-documents-reveal-graphic-details-about-aj-freund-case/ NSFW
Newly Released Documents Reveal GRAPHIC DETAILS About AJ Freund Case
**WARNING: Documents contain graphic and disturbing details. Click and View Gallery There are 10 Images
CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. — In newly released documents from court records, McHenry County detectives detailed the findings of their investigation into the Andrew “AJ” Freund case.
The 5-year-old’s parents, Andrew “Drew” Freund and JoAnn Cunningham were charged with his murder. A few days after AJ was reported missing on April 18, investigators suspected foul play.
After K-9s soon established that AJ did not leave his Crystal Lake home, the focus turned to his parents in the days and hours leading up to his disappearance. Already well-known to the Department of Child and Family Services for reported cases of abuse, cases that were found by DCFS to be unfounded, police found the home to be dirty and in a hoarder-like condition.
Their story began to unravel when Drew Freund consented to a search of his cellphone in the early morning hours of April 15. It was then that investigators learned there was a Google search for “Child CPR” on April 15.
They also found a picture of a shopping list that was taken on April 17. According to the documents, several items of note on the shopping list were duct tape, plastic gloves, air freshener and bleach. The items were purchased at the local Jewel-Osco.
In the home, police found laundry that smelled of bleach and at least four bleach bottles. They also found Drew Freund’s gym shoes with dripping wet mud.
Under questioning from detectives, the couple tried to explain away the shopping list. They said tape was going to be used for hanging pictures. The bleach was to clean the premises — they said they went through at least one bottle a week. Detectives were skeptical of that information.
In regard to the CPR search in the middle of the night, Drew Freund said perhaps Cunningham was searching CPR for babies in anticipation of her future child. Cunningham is seven months pregnant. In addition to AJ, she is also the mother of his brother, 4-year-old Parker.
Days later on April 23, With the help of the FBI, investigators were able to recover a deleted video on Cunningham’s cellphone and a two-minute video of her berating AJ for urinating on his bed. In the video, AJ can be seen naked except for a few bandages around his wrists and hips.
Drew Freund told investigators that Cunningham believed AJ had “oppositional defiance disorder or ODD and AJ thinks of himself as the leader of the home and is therefore defiant to his parents, lies, disobeys and thinks things should go his way.”
He went on to detail how AJ, for example, would be punished for improperly washing and stacking dishes and lying.
Under mounting evidence, the couple confessed to the murder on the morning of April 24 and admitted that on April 15, AJ had lied about soiled underwear so he was subjected to a cold shower for about 20 minutes. After putting him to bed, Cunningham checked on AJ sometime later where she discovered he had died.
Drew Freund said, “the next day he took AJ’s body to the basement and stored him in a tote. He said on 4/17/19 he placed AJ inside several trash bags, placed the body in the trunk of his car and drove him in an area in Woodstock.”
He allegedly dug a shallow grave and placed the child in it and covered it with straw and left.
Both parents agreed to let the state’s child welfare agency care for their younger son.
FYI - There is also an older son that Grandma Lorelei is already caring for. No word as to whom the father is. All together Joann Cunningham will have given birth to 4 Children after she has the one she is carrying now. She is 7 mos. pregnant. They are giving Andrew Freund a paternity test to verify if he is the father. This is beyond anything my mind can process. Extremely hard for me right now.
fogdryer ago
I heard a male adult-------distant family-------say he used to live with them, He couldn't continue because of the abuse. Cps wasnt interested in the situation. Adult male said the house was filthy and the abuse was too much for him,,,,,,,,,,
carmencita ago
Wash this the older son, that is living with the Grandmother? I never dream, but I had to toss and turn quite a bit the night I posted it. So upsetting. After what I have been through I did not want to post. But the DCFS aspect drove me to do it. I wanted it put out there. 17 visits and they found nothing wrong? Something must change and NOW.
fogdryer ago
the wifes ex-husband says hes so glad he never had kids with her...……......….
carmencita ago
Can you imagine how that guy feels? He came so close to getting in deep. There but for the grace of God.........