© 2024 Blaze Media LLC. All rights reserved.
Parents of missing 5-year-old AJ Freund charged with murder after police find little boy's body
Image source: Fox News video screenshot

Parents of missing 5-year-old AJ Freund charged with murder after police find little boy's body

The child was reported missing by his father last week

The parents of missing 5-year-old Andrew "AJ" Freund of Crystal Lake, Illinois, have been charged with the child's murder, after police discovered what they believe to be the little boy's body.

What are the details?

JoAnn Cunningham and Andrew Freund Sr. were arrested Wednesday, after authorities found remains believed to be the couple's son, wrapped in plastic, in a shallow grave dug on a farm near Woodstock, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Freund called 911 to report his son missing on Thursday, claiming he returned home from a doctor's appointment that morning and the boy was nowhere to be found. The father agreed to speak with detectives, but Cunningham was described by police as "uncooperative" earlier in the investigation.

During a news conference after the arrest, Crystal Lake Police told reporters "that both parents provided information that helped investigators locate the boy's body," WABC-TV reported.

Cunningham has been charged with five counts of first-degree murder, four counts of aggravated battery, two counts of aggravated domestic batter, and one count of failure to report a missing or child death.

Freund has been charged with five counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated battery, one count of aggravated domestic battery, two counts of concealment of a homicidal death, and one count of failure to report a missing or child death.

Anything else?

AJ's younger brother has been in the care of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services since shortly after the 5-year-old went missing.

The family is no stranger to the DCFS. The agency entered their lives after AJ was born with opiates in his system, and has had contact on and off as late as December 2018, according to the Tribune.

Want to leave a tip?

We answer to you. Help keep our content free of advertisers and big tech censorship by leaving a tip today.
Want to join the conversation?
Already a subscriber?