on March 27th 2024 officers from several
agencies in the state of Washington
would be alerted about a child who went
missing under suspicious circumstances
family members of four-year-old Ariel
Garcia notified officials of their
concerns he was last known to be with
his mother Janet Garcia in an affidavit
Ariel's grandmother shared Janet's
Behavior had become quote very violent
and unpredictable she was obviously
concerned for her grandchild's safety
through investigative work officers
discovered was last seen leaving her
apartment at 7:00 a.m. that morning in
the midst of tracking her location down
officers would just so happen to receive
a call from an alcohol rehabilitation
center just 3 hours after the missing
child report was put in place officers
from the Clark County Sheriff's Office
met Janet at the rehab center and pulled
her out of the building to question her
about her son's whereabouts how you
doing yeah okay yeah sure nothing on you
no okay you guys give us some privacy
can I just speak you don't need to reach
in I'll just do you know why we're here
are you okay if I open the zipper why
why are you guys here what's going on
today can I open the zipper just check
in there thank you I just want to make
sure before what's going on today with
you and like sounds like the cops have
been talking to you already yeah so my
um so I you got some blood drops on your
shoes
yeah so my son fell this morning earlier
oh no yeah but I was able to take him to
the doctors and everything was okay I
took him to with another lady so she can
watch him for me cuz I was I wasn't
staying at home I had problems going on
with my parents and they didn't let me
in the house so I um I was saying with
another lady she was super sweet that's
where my son fell and then but but we
left so I was like okay you know um so I
went to another lady's house and I told
her if she could watch him for me I
wanted to come get you know I wanted it
to fully recover I'm an alcoholic so um
I was like if you can watch him for me
for 12 months that'd be amazing because
I'm not talking to my mom and she's the
one that has like just like a notorized
paper saying that she has legal custody
of them but I have legal custody of them
she's not letting me see my older son so
I'm a little that would be really hard
yeah I'm a little bit upset about that
one news report shared that Janet's own
mother Maria had filed for legal
guardianship of both Ariel and his
seven-year-old brother only two days
prior on March 25th sources share that
Janet Maria and Janet's two sons all
lived in an apartment together and
affidavit shares that Maria accused
Janet of taking Ariel with her to go
drinking at a bar while out with friends
and that he had no shoes and was not
dressed appropriately for cold weather
conditions she said Janet would also
leave both her sons unsupervised for
long periods of time without food Janet
had also allegedly violently thrown
Ariel's older brother against a wall
physically abusing them Janet's mother
also specifically cited her drug and
alcohol abuse as a problem in addition
to filing for legal guardianship Maria
also filed for a restraining order
against Janet prohibiting her from being
Within 100 ft of Ariel and his brother
the court then granted an emergency
guardianship the day prior to this
footage on March 26th a court date was
scheduled for March 29th to go over the
conditions of the Guardianship and the
restraining order it's likely that this
situation is heavily affecting Janet's
actions so I'm here now and everything's
okay so I don't know what else well we
obviously we just we want to make sure
that he's safe and know where he is
who's the friend that you left it with
um I left him with another lady I don't
have her
information oh well that's that's not
going to cut it we got to figure out
where he's at where can you like tell me
the location where somebody could go and
check on him and make sure he's okay in
SE um like seac area Okay Seattle more
specific I don't have address nothing
who's the friend how do you know the
person that how did you pick the person
she's a longtime friend that I know okay
what's her name um Alica that's how I
know Alica bone Alica bone M okay and
you've known or anything okay but you've
known her for a long time so how did you
reach out to her so I reached out to her
um because I I needed help how did you
reach out to her um I found her number
on my old Facebook but I no longer have
a Facebook anymore okay something you
don't sign back into and no no you
deleted it all I delete it all the time
so yeah you found it today on your old
Facebook and her name is Al ala bone
Alica bone like b o n e mhm note Janet's
confirmation of her friend's name Alica
bone spelled b o NE e okay and she lives
in the seac
area so you drove him from the first
house you were at to her house or the
doctor first mhm what doctor did you
take him to
Swedish Swedish and that's it Swedish
where or I think it's Providence
actually Providence in Everett in ever
Providence okay you understand we just
need to make sure that he's okay and
then yeah we do that and then we'll we
can leave you be you know yeah okay so
how do we find
Alica I don't know can you describe to
me how you got there from Providence so
I just drove from there to Seattle and
then that's it you drove from Providence
to Seattle to alica's house yes okay um
did you drive on the freeway or mhm okay
um how how long did it take you to get
there like 2 hours 2 hours and what car
were you driving my car so just like 1
hour or so and what kind of car do you
have um I have a Nissan okay where's
that car now I don't have it with me
okay so where's it at um I left it at
her house and then I came over here on
the bus evidence discovered later would
suggest Janet did not take the bus to
get there instead security footage shows
that she parked her vehicle down the
street from the alcohol rehab center
ironically parking it at a bar roughly 3
hours before the police began
questioning her her about a minute after
parking she exits her vehicle and walks
towards the rehab center it's worth
noting that the rehab center is an over
2hour car ride away from her supposed
friend's house in SeaTac taking the bus
especially if it was a last minute trip
is highly unlikely all trips we could
find wouldn't have even dropped her off
until after 6:30 in the afternoon as the
roots that leave in the late morning
can't bring her there any earlier the
closest bus stop to the rehab center is
over a mile walk away as well only if
she was running would she have arrived
before police began to question her do
you remember what exit you
took I don't know okay um Janet takes a
seemingly relaxed big yawn here despite
talking to police about her son's
whereabouts Janette okay
Janette you're not you're
not
lying you have a longtime friend that
you reach out to to leave your son with
who you obviously care about very much I
love him with all my yes and you're
expressing how upset you are about
what's going on between you and your mom
and the custody of him and your older
son like that's horrible so I know that
you're not gonna go leave your son with
somebody and you don't know where he is
yeah no so you do know where he is no I
know where he is I know where he's at
tell me where he's at I don't have the
address for him okay how can we find the
address for him I don't know did you put
it in your phone no sck get there okay
Alica you know where your son is because
you're a mom who loves her son very much
and you didn't not Alica I'm Janette I'm
sorry Janette yeah you took him
somewhere and you're going to go back to
him and you know where he is
M so tell me where he's at so we can
make sure that he's okay or what's going
on so he's not I mean he's there he's
with her but he have to go check on him
I can give you an address okay what's
the address I don't know you have to
write it down okay I can do that do have
a phone number for it to um I don't okay
I don't have a phone number for her but
when he fail where he get her
just he on his head but he fell on the
ground and he hurt himself heads are the
worst yeah I'm just trying to find I
don't even how old's your son he is five
Janet says her son is five but according
to news reports he was 4 years old when
this video was taken so I don't know if
this is the right one the address Janet
supplies which we are keeping private
for the homeowner sake as they may not
even be involved is nowhere near the
SeaTac area as she claims the address
she shares is roughly a 30-minute drive
away from that area Seattle Washington
where did you get that address from just
now from the top of my head okay yeah
okay so that's where you remember
leaving him so yeah Alica that's alah
mhm how do you spell that a l i c a okay
um last name is b o n n b o n n yeah uh
she seems to remember a different
spelling of her friend's last name
contradicting her previous confirmation
from before so and and if you guys can't
find him or whatever this is where I'm
going to be for the next 12 months but I
mean he's there check in how did you
guys discuss that you're going to you're
obviously going to communicate with him
still you want to check on him and all
that how are you guys going to
communicate well I'm not I'm not going
to have my I'm not going to use my phone
cuz I'm going to be here for the next 12
months okay um so if anything I don't
know what else okay that's it you didn't
discuss that with Alica before you left
I I yes I discuss with her I'm going to
be here for 12 months and then um and
then but before that um like I don't
speak to my parents or anything like
that because we got into an altercation
so but this is where I this is where I'm
going to be okay you can um going to
give him that address yeah and then
um tell me about your alcoholism how
long have you been dealing with that
I've been drinking alcohol you don't
mind telling me you don't have to tell
I've been here this is like my okay I've
been here like this is like my 30 here
okay so I did 11 months in recovery
because I've never I was never like an
alcoholic I was more like of a drug user
so the only drug I ever used was meth
yeah and I used it for roughly like five
four to 5 years okay um I came to
finally get clean on and off on and off
right I tried it one time and then years
pass and then I do it again and then
years pass this my third year clean I
started drinking a lot because I was
like okay I'm not a drinker I'm I'm like
I was you know I was a I was a drug us
so alcohol is okay so alcohol is fine
I'm like it's a socialized thing that
everybody does I'm going to go out I'm
going to have dinner I'm going to do
this well I drink to the point where I
can drink a whole bottle of Just Like
Liquor so I'm like that's now I'm an
alcoholic gotta so I started to have all
kinds of problems and then now I'm back
here hoping I can get clean again I just
di well I'm glad you're in a space where
you feel safe that you feel like that
can work for you I hope it does yeah
that's great yeah I'm ready good well I
hope I just want to um figure out where
your son is OB there was some concerns
and once we can do that um his injury
was pretty bad yeah was there quite a
bit of blood and stuff what did he do he
jumped from the from the bed that we
were sleeping on to the ground and then
he just got blood on his head and so I
had him take him to the doctor and so
he's doing good okay okay how did what
did he hit it on just on the ground okay
how did it start bleeding just it just
started bleeding can you show me like
what side of his head do you remember
what side of his head it was um I don't
remember exactly what side of the head
it was but it's starting to rain a
little bit yeah it is okay so you don't
how what time did it occur today like
early like at 10: 11 so how long were
you guys at the hospital we were only
there for a little bit he I don't even
think he got check we got there and um
but we didn't he didn't I didn't wait
enough for him to get checked out so so
he didn't actually go back and get
checked gotcha did you actually go
inside and check him in okay and then
did you tell him you were leaving or did
you did okay you just said he's not
going to be seen in left yeah okay and
how is he acting he's okay yeah what
happened to him when he fell nothing he
just cried just cried mhm just just like
you know just so
yeah okay yeah do you want to sit down I
can put you just I can leave the door
open you can sit right there so you're
out of the
r u when you fell down you think need to
go to hospital because he was bleeding
from his head so that's why yeah okay go
that's a legit reason
I you can stay
dry yeah so well that's scary he's four
okay Janet confirms his age of four even
though she said he was five earlier do
you know how long you at the hospital
for um I was only there for a little bit
of time again I didn't want to wait so I
was like let's go MH can you describe to
me what that Providence looks like do
you know what road it's on did you park
in the emergency room parking lot or mm-
I don't remember I don't know or was
there a parking gar or anything I don't
remember at the top of my head okay do
you remember when you walked in like can
you describe to me when you walked in
what it looked like it just the hospital
just the hospital okay but can you
describe like when you walk in the door
where was the checkin in the front like
the I walked in as soon as I walked in
the front desk was checked in right
there and I just I said my son had to be
seen for something and then I just his
name and everything everything okay
you're going like this so you wrote it
down or was there like a check-in thing
or there was a check all but I think
they checked me in no yeah so you didn't
write anything on there okay have you
been there before no no that was your
first time that was my first time when
you checked in the desk was it just an
open desk or just an open Des was it
behind a like a did they have like a
glass wall or just an open desk okay was
there a lot of people in there MH yeah
that's why you didn't want to wait cuz
it was too long do you think he needed
stitches or anything no he's fine okay
you didn't remember where his injury
wasm is it front side back do you
remember it's the side it was the side
definitely one of the sides that youall
the front yeah okay front you're kind of
pointing above the eyebrow mhm you
contacted your friend through Facebook
yeah okay or I got her information
through Facebook oh okay and then what
information did you get um just her
number and then I went to her house and
dropped off my kid there and then now
I'm here okay you got like her phone
number mhm okay and did you call her
from your
phone um from my phone okay the one
that's in your purse there you called
her from okay I think I erased it though
but I have her number at this point
there are multiple definitive pieces of
information that Janet didn't remember
or simply didn't have access to that she
miraculously remembers or discovers in
her phone who she left her son with
being one where she left him being
another where his injury was on his head
and now she claims to have her friend's
number even though she said she deleted
her Facebook and phone records I don't
know if you guys want to call her but I
don't think she's going to answer
anymore in searching the phone number
that Janet provided we discovered it is
sourced from alhamra in California which
is just south of Pasadena no records of
who might own this phone number were
available online at the time of editing
this video but we are keeping it private
it is unknown if this was another thing
that Janet has pulled out the top of her
head I don't think she's going to answer
how come what makes you think that
because I don't know if she's still
going to be there did you send her any
text
messages no okay do you remember what
your son was wearing today when you took
him to the hospital um pajamas blue
pajamas poo like when need the Poo just
regular blue pajamas oh blue can I ask
who you're messaging with yeah my sister
she I was just talking to her about um
her flying out here oh nice where did
she live California par
um in
pasadina yeah I want to move over there
that nice and sunny down there right now
yeah really
good I might just take her phone she's
got some specks on her shirt she's got
BL on her shoes she not really making
sense so if you guys don't like locate
my son what's going to
happen who working on at the moment why
why do you think they won't be a to
locate them I mean you got the address
to where you'd
be because like I'm I don't know I'm
just saying if you guys are not able to
find him like what's what can happen
what's looking like what it's looking
like right now is that we're going to
need to stay with you until we find him
cuz it sounds like you said you know
where he is you know where you left him
so it shouldn't be an issue right should
be able to locate him okay so that's
what we just need to stay with you until
till we locate him okay um I have
another favor though to ask yes because
it's raining and it's cold and I'm
shivering and we're going to be with you
I think for a little bit are you
listening to me yeah we're going to be
with you for a little bit would you mind
we have a Precinct right at the road
it's comfortable and dry that we can all
sit in so we can chat um so we're all
out of the rain would that be okay where
is it it's right down the fa rounds yeah
just on 179 yeah and then we can give
you a ride back and all of that if
that's okay can I get a coffee from here
before we go we got coffee there we have
coffee we got coffee coffee can you grab
that sea belt around your backside then
that way we can all be dry and
comfortable and sit you can get some
coffee welcome Hey I appreciate it
absolutely I can stop and get her a
coffee or something the male officer
appears to drive Janet to the station
although there is some interrogation
footage we will break down later on it
appears there is no footage covering
their Journey to the station the female
officer stays behind to investigate the
area I I need everybody out of here
there's no there's no like if answer um
we're investigating a crime right now
she evacuates and searches the rehab
building but discovers nothing of
significance she also questions others
on site who may have interacted with
Janet under cover right there she pulled
in quick
too you know her so um did you chat with
her today or anything just when I pulled
up I saw her and I said what are you
doing back and she said she's trying to
she sober again she cut her hair like
Britney Spears she had really long hair
oh she's said really long hair oh yeah
Maria's filing for legal guardianship
also cited Janet recently shaved her
head and that she was becoming more
quote erratic and then she just kind of
looked washed up you know I said well
you know be good and listen that's what
I told her in the fall last fall she was
here she's been here like four or five
times you know she just but not since
like last fall no I don't know how she
showed up you said that she might have
took an Uber or something yeah and then
they came and then she H so but you
didn't see no car drop her off or
anything huh no she got dropped off up
there when you say that you mean us yeah
I came earlier okay you saw her oh yeah
yeah when they were up here earlier she
hid from them hell yeah okay 100%
positive she had dropped off in the
black card but I didn't think she was
coming here until I walked in there and
I said Ola
seor I thought it was although footage
shows Janet drove and parked a car at
the local bar and walked towards the
rehab center the Roads connecting them
are fairly busy with a speed limit of 50
m hour and seemingly no sidewalks it's
possible someone might have picked her
up as a hitchhiker and dropped her off
it's also possible that this eyewitness
is simply mistaken any other
conversation you had with her today I'm
sorry that's all I got her mom's Dr off
a bunch of times and they all I know is
she's just kind of problematic you
know that
like like when she was here she wouldn't
really listen she' get arguments with
other women that were here
um you know her sponsor would tell her
to do things and and she wouldn't do
them you know like being here there's
like a set of rules if you want to be
here because it's free we don't charge
nobody and stay sober you know stay
within the guidelines and it was just
never that way with her so okay just
kind of she was always off the wall kind
of I don't want to say crazy but maybe
mental health issues did you see her
like have anything with her when she
showed up that little purse no she just
came with a t-shirt yeah she had like a
zip up sweatshirt on when she left oh
you guys gave her that that she just had
a t-shirt on and her purse and it's
freezing right here yeah it is I'm
freezing and I have a sunshirt
on okay I appreciate your help who owns
this place you and your dad my dad your
dad does where's he at um I think he's
at home oh okay so I know the deputy on
the phone kind of talk to you but did
you see her get here I didn't see her
get here no she's been here before but I
mean like I told the adult she left and
we told her mom to find her like actual
like a like a psychiatrist cuz her
problem is just like it was beyond just
drugs and alcohol yeah so Janet's Mother
Maria in her plea to the court for her
grandchildren's custody seems to have
taken the rehab workers advice in the
order she had requested rehab and
psychiatric care for Janet along with
access to Janet's tax refund so Maria
could use the money to support her kids
While Janet was in psychiatric care
Maria had written to the court if she
has access to her tax refund I'm afraid
she will lose herself even more the last
thing I want is to lose her due to an
overdose or in a drug rated incident she
needs rehab and psychiatric help to
bring her back to who she was her kids
need her I really hope Janet will be
able to come back from this to be able
to fully parent her children she needs
more help than I can give her minutes
after that conversation officers
discover the car Janet parked at the bar
they appear to break open the driver
side window and secure the vehicle based
off the footage provided they seem to
find nothing alarming
empty Hallelujah all right I was trying
to while these officers question
individuals at the rehab center Janet is
simultaneously being questioned at the
station more interrogation footage will
be viewed later but from this roughly
30-second clip we received it appears
investigators are going through her
phone call history and questioning her
on who each number is connected to you
can also see they've supplied Janet her
coffee as promised along with what
appears to be cupcakes during police
interrogations it is vital that officers
ensure suspects are taken care of so
that they cannot reasonably claim name
in court that they were coerced into
confessing Daniel told me that her mom
was
calling because they can't find her son
and her mom went to her house and saw
blood I don't know how dramatic it was
but saw blood I don't know where but
just saw blood okay and they can't find
her son and then she's over here and
Daniel my brother where's your son she
he's with my mom and her mom's calling
over here saying he can't find her son I
mean she I mean there's bad connection
there I don't know if she's lying crazy
I don't know and her mom's crying in
hysterical no she's not here he's not
here where where the heck is he do you
know how many children she has two two
uh do we know where the other child is
um as far as I know with her mother okay
and I think that was the whole dilemma
is they can't find her other son Goa and
so her mom went to her apartment and saw
blood and went hysterical and this is
how this all started did she seem like
uh from the the previous Janet that you
knew a couple years ago was it yeah um
compared to today how was her behavior
uh drastically different because she was
always bubbly and loud and had this big
great laugh you know kind of really
annoying laugh and and talking to
everybody and and she was just kind of
with her hands in her pockets and quiet
and um and just went in and sat down and
didn't talk to anybody really so she's
not currently resident she doesn't have
any private space or room here correct
is her sponsor here no okay he's not
here right yeah um does he normally live
here or is he still primarily living
here he's the owner of the of this this
land gotcha yeah and I don't think he's
here right now though do you know if she
was being disruptive today or causing
any issues that's what I mean it was
kind of drastically she just kind of
quiet and went sat in the chair and
didn't talk to the part we were actually
coming back from a job site my dad
called me he told me to call you guys
mhm cuz I guess she was here and I think
um Janet's mom probably called him and
told told him the situation what was
going on that one of her sons was
missing and uh the I think her mom ended
up finding wherever she was staying full
of blood or something like that okay so
he told me to call you guys and to let
you guys know cuz I think she had filed
a report already over there and so he
told me to call you guys uh let you guys
know that she was here and well he
didn't tell me all that part until I got
here but yeah so that's why I called you
guys was she on alcohol it was alcohol
did I know it was alcohol Crystal and
probably everything in between she
didn't um go back into any rooms or
anything yeah they didn't see her do it
the officers continued to question
individuals at the rehab center and
search the property based off the
footage we've obtained they found
nothing that hinted at Ariel's potential
location yeah again if if we find
anything on our own I mean if you guys
got a car call 311 hours after bringing
Janet to the station for further
questioning this footage shows some of
of the interrogation
room cool sorry I wasting the call
oh um I'm just going to shut the door oh
okay
grab okay you need anything just knock
on the door okay based off the footage
we were given it appears that a more
thorough interrogation took place on
footage that has not yet been made
public problem is it's reporting right
now and it
says most of the footage provided here
showed very little contact with Janet
the video timestamps indicate that Janet
was at the station for over 3 hours at
this
[Music]
point we ordered food earlier put do you
want
some tacos and stuff do you want me to
get you some water with them okay do you
like ice in it or no no ice okay okay
you're welcome and then any look
finding we haven't um and then so I'll
let you know that you're going to be
going to jail tonight for making false
statements is what we're charging you
with okay so um I'm just wrapping up
your paperwork and then we'll let you
like eat and everything and then we'll
take you down there okay all right
[Music]
did she get some
food all right so I think um Tanya
detective Johnson had told you that
you're going to go to jail tonight okay
um I want to take a picture of your hand
because you had said you had hurt your
nail or broke your nail or something so
I want to get a good picture which one
were you talking about do you remember
um I don't remember it okay I'll just
take a picture of yeah hold them y like
that excuse
me do you have any other injuries on
your hands or anything
okay all
right just want to go for me
mhm right
yeah Janet these are going to go with
you this is the search warrant for your
cell phone that we wrote and then this
is your Citation for um making false
statements to the public service so
these will go with you and go in your
property the jail okay um I'm going to
just uh search you real quick okay so if
I turn around place the door for me
spread your legs for
me nothing else in your pockets or
anything okay I'll it yes all
right according to reports officials
issued an endangered missing person's
advice advisory at midnight that day
this more locally focused alert was
issued instead of an amber alert
according to news sources Ariel's
disappearance did not meet the federal
requirements for an amber alert which
requires information like a potential
suspect vehicle description and a
defined location of where an abduction
or disappearance took place just before
6:00 in the evening of the following day
on March 28th 2024 officials would
unfortunately discover Ariel's body off
of Interstate 5 he was found in a
location that was roughly halfway
between Janet's allegedly blood covered
apartment and the rehab center she
visited the location of Ariel's body was
an over 75m drive away from her
apartment however it is unclear if this
was where she was staying when she left
for the rehab center Janet Garcia is
being charged with first and second
degree murder as well as an assault of a
child she has submitted a plea of not
guilty and she currently has a bail set
to $3 million at the time of editing
this video Janet's case is going through
the court system and a verdict and
sentencing is yet to be determined
according to news reports an autopsy
revealed that Ariel was stabbed up to 41
times and showed signs of defensive
wounds this story is unfortunately not
an entirely unique one for the United
States and criticisms of custody laws
continue to arise from situations like
this in this case District 35
representative Travis Couture criticized
Legislation during the events of this
video that he sees as two laxs he shares
that current legislation strictly keeps
kids away from parents who use fentanyl
but other hard drugs do not qualify
grounds for separation he claims that in
the specific case of Ariel Garcia had
something like my bill been in place
that death might have been prevented and
added we don't want instances like what
we saw with this case with little Ariel
where you know he's murdered he's dumped
like garbage on the side of I5 like his
life didn't matter as extremely dark and
devastating cases of this nature come to
light we hope that in publishing these
stories however tragic it helps promote
transparency in government inform the
public and shed light on events like
these