SCOTT COUNTY, Miss. — A Salisbury woman is in custody and deputies are looking for her husband after a toddler was abandoned and found dead in Mississippi, according to our Mississippi affiliate WAPT.
Investigators said Amy Harrison and her husband, James Harrison, were driving along Interstate 20 in Scott County Thursday with their 2-year-old daughter and a 7-year-old boy when the couple got into an argument.
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Amy Harrison reportedly got out of the truck and her husband drove off with the kids. Deputies said he later abandoned the truck with the children still inside.
WAPT reported that, at some point, the children walked away from the truck but got separated. The older child found a hunter in the woods and asked for help, sparking a search by law enforcement.
Deputies said they later found the family’s truck in the woods off the road. They searched the area and found the 2-year-old girl a short time later. It appeared she died from hypothermia, according to WAPT, but an autopsy will determine the official cause of death.
The 7-year-old boy is in DHS custody and is living with a deputy and his family, officials said.
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A manhunt for James Harrison is still underway.
“They seemed like they were a happy family to me,” said Susan Euart, who worked with James Harrison.
Deputies said Harrison was last seen on Friday and they believe he may suffer from mental illness.
“His mental state, he was not making good decisions,” Scott County Sheriff Mike Lee said. “When he was seen by the witness on Friday, he was actually not in any shoes, was wearing some short-sleeve shirt, appeared to be soaking wet. And again, was out in the elements for quite a while.”
Deputies also said Harrison is a diabetic and had not been taking his insulin.
Amy Harrison has been charged with child neglect.
Anyone with information about James Harrison’s whereabouts is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 601-355-TIPS (8477).
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