What we know about three-year-old Elijah Vue’s disappearance

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An Amber Alert went out in the Wisconsin town of Two Rivers warning that a little boy had gone missing and police needed the community’s help.

More than two weeks on from the 20 February alert, the town is still searching for Elijah Vue, while his mother and a male acquaintance are in jail, facing child neglect charges.

Here’s everything we know so far about the case:

What happened to Elijah Vue?

Three-year-old Elijah Vue was last seen at around 8am on 20 February on the 3900 block of Michicot Road in Two Rivers, a town on the shore of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin.

Two Rivers Police Department said they received a call at 10.59am from “the adult caregiver”, who later turned out to be his mother’s partner Jesse Vang – reporting the boy as missing.

Elijah, from Wisconsin Dells around 150 miles away, had been sent by his mother Katrina Baur to stay with Mr Vang “for disciplinary reasons”, Two Rivers authorities said.

In court documents seen by NBC 26, police said that Ms Baur told them she had sent her son to Mr Vang so he could teach the boy how to be a man.

Mr Vang allegedly used “tactics” including time outs where Elijah had to stand up for one to three hours, or was forced to take cold showers.

At the time of his disappearance, Elijah was said to be wearing grey pants, a dark-coloured long-sleeve shirt and red-and-green dinosaur slip-on shoes.

Police are also looking for signs of his red and white plaid blanket, which he may have been carrying that morning.

Elijah Vue’s mother and boyfriend arrested

One day after after Eijah’s disappearance, his mother Katrina Baur, 31, was arrested and charged with party-to-a-crime child neglect.

She reportedly changed her story on her whereabouts at least twice while being interviewed by investigators and was then hit with two further charges of obstruction on Monday, 26 February.

On 7 March, Ms Baur appeared in court and her appeal to have her $15,000 bond revoked was denied by the judge after he heard a statement from her mother asking that her daughter not be allowed to go free.

“I don’t feel it’s worth the risk to lower her bond, especially as [Elijah] has not been found and many questions remain unanswered,” the statement, read by District Attorney Jacalyn LaBre, said.

The DA announced updated charges at the hearing, replacing the original child neglect charge to chronic child neglect and adding another child neglect charge relating to a six-year-old girl on 14 February.

Jesse Vang, 39, was arrested a few hours after Elijah disappeared and was charged with child neglect. He reportedly has a history of other criminal offences, including child abuse and is being held on a $20,000 bond.

The pair have so far appeared in court three times: on Friday 23 and Monday 26 February, and then THursday 7 March.

Their preliminary hearing is now set to take place on 14 March an Manitowoc County Court.

Local reports suggested that Elijah’s father has also been in prison for some time.

The Vue family, who said they had not had contact with the boy since he was a baby, have been heavily involved in the search efforts for him.

The search for Elijah

Multiple law enforcement agencies including the Two Rivers Police Department, the FBI, the Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigations, the Manitowoc Police Department, the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office and the Sheboygan County Sheriff’s Office are involved in the search for the little boy.

Dive teams are combing through nearby waterways while investigators have also turned their attention to a landfill site in Two Rivers over the last few days.

Two Rivers Police Department chief Ben Meinnert said on Tuesday 27 February that his officers were continuing to follow up on every lead in their attempt to bring Elijah home safely. He would not comment on specific case details, including whether the department was treating this as an abduction.

A large number of local volunteers – including Elijah’s relatives – have also joined in the search over the past week.

On Tuesday 27 February, one of Elijah’s relatives told reporters that the family was “burdened” by an unimaginable situation.

“The pain is indescribable,” she said. “We cannot express our sorrow or the desperation that consumes us.

“To anyone with information on Elijah’s whereabouts, we plead with you to please come forward.”

She said every piece of information would bring them one step closer to bringing Elijah back to his family.

Police officers and volunteers are knocking door to door, searching local rivers and using drones and dogs as part of the search.

“We’re all out here for the same reason, to find that little boy,” local Maria Wright told ABC 2 News.

“When you see everybody you know that we are a team. Your community is one big team. We’re going to keep on and the search is going to go on and on until we find this little boy.”

Locals have been asked to check anywhere a small child might hide, climb or fall, and to look for any items on their property which don’t belong to them, such as Elijah’s blanket or shoes.

Law enforcement pleas for help in finding Elijah

In an update on Tuesday 27 February, the FBI said it was offering a $15,000 reward for information which leads them to Elijah.

As of Tuesday 5 March, Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers is now offering $10,000 for the same information or leads to the arrest of those responsible for his disappearance. That was an increase from the original $1,000 proposed by the organisation.

Two Rivers Police Chief Ben Meinnert said in a Facebook update on Saturday 24 February that “locating Elijah and reuniting him with his family continues to be our top priority”, something he has repeated in multiple updates on the search.

The police department has also issued multiple warnings about scams related to Elijah’s disappearance, including a video appearing to show police finding the boy.

This was fake, Chief Meinnert said, and Elijah remains missing as of Friday 1 March.

“Again, beware of scams seeking your money and personal information, but also those now looking to take advantage of this unfortunate incident,” the chief added, referring to reports of residents being called by scammers asking for money to help with the search.

Anyone with information on the case can call 844-267-6648 or submit information via the local Crime Stoppers app P3.

Photos released of car connected to Elijah’s disappearance

As the search for Elijah Vue entered its third week in Wisconsin, police were asking for help in piecing together the movements of a car the day before the three-year-old vanished.

Two Rivers Police Department shared photos of the beige 1997 Nissan Altima on Monday 4 March, saying law enforcement was in possession of the vehicle.

“We are requesting homeowners and businesses to review their surveillance camera footage captured on February 19, 2024 between the hours of 2:00 PM – 9:00 PM,” the department said on Facebook.

“Due to the duration of the hours requested to be reviewed, we are asking the public beyond the greater Two Rivers area and adjacent counties to review their videos as well.”

It was not immediately clear who the car may have belonged to, with the department only sharing that the registration plate started with “A” and ended with “0”.

Locals raised concerns about their ability to help when many doorbell cameras only store data going back five days.