Young drowning victims positively identified as missing toddlers

(TULSA, Okla.) UPDATE 3: DNA analysis confirmed two young drowning victims recovered earlier this week are 3-year-old Miracle and 2-year-old Tony Crook, two toddlers who disappeared from a Tulsa apartment complex last Friday. The biological mother of the children, Donisha Willis, was arrested for assault and battery on a police officer and two counts of child neglect the day the children went missing. She is being held on $225,000 bond. During a press conference on Friday, Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler said the decision to file charges in this case will not be taken lightly. Willis is due back in court on June 2. UPDATE 2: A second body was recovered by a search team in Tulsa just after 5 p.m. Wednesday. Tulsa Fire Department and Oklahoma Task Force One recovered the body of a very young boy in Bird Creek at 46th Street North in Tulsa. Seventeen rescuers, three boats, three canines and two drones in addition to several law enforcement agencies and other first responders assisted with the search. Police believe all signs point to the two bodies recovered in the last 24 hours belong to missing toddlers Miracle and Tony Crook. The search was widened on Wednesday after the body of a young girl was found in Wagoner County Tuesday night. Officials are waiting on confirmation from the medical examiner’s office before positively identifying the victims. UPDATE 1: On Tuesday, Wagoner County E-911 received a report of a possible body in the Verdigris Navigational Channel at Lock and Dam 17 south of Wagoner. Off-duty Wagoner County Deputy Matt Smith was in the area and witnessed what he believed to be a body in the water. Wagoner County Deputies, multiple Fire Departments, and Wagoner County Emergency Management were notified. Wagoner County Emergency Management coordinated with Muskogee County Emergency Management to respond quickly to the scene south of Lock and Dam 17. Wagoner County Emergency Management recovered one victim from the Verdigris Navigational Channel 50 minutes upon receiving the initial call and stood by for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to complete an investigation. Tulsa Police Responded to the scene to assist in the investigation. Tulsa Police Department, Wagoner County Sheriff’s Office, Wagoner County Emergency Management, Oklahoma Highway Patrol Marine Division, Cherokee Nation Marshall Service, Fort Gibson Fire Department, Muskogee County Emergency Management, Okay Fire Department were all involved in the recovery efforts. Wednesday morning, officials are continuing the search effort with all the agencies plus Tulsa Fire, Army Corp of Engineers, USAR, Rogers County Sheriff’s Office. The body removed from the water is that of a young female. The Medical Examiner will work to definitively identify the body. The search area for Miracle (3) and Tony Crook (2) has now dramatically widened. We understand that everyone wants to help with the search efforts, at this time we would ask that people let the emergency rescue personnel use our considerable resources to search the numerous miles of waterways that is extremely dangerous in many areas. The children’s biological mother remains in custody. She does not have custody of the children and should not have had them. She is not being forthcoming with information about what happened to the children. If you have any information that could help with this case, please call 918-596-9222 or you can remain anonymous by calling Tulsa Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS. ORIGINAL STORY: The search for two toddlers who went missing on Friday turned into a recovery mission, following new information Tuesday. TPD’s Special Response Team is saturating the area of the Shoreline Apartments looking for any clues to the whereabouts of 2-year-old Miracle and 1-year-old Tony Crook. Video surveillance indicates that the two children were holding hands and disappeared into the creek West of the Shoreline Apartments complex on Friday. Police are now focusing their efforts on the creek. Earlier in the day, Oklahoma Highway Patrol brought their flat-bottomed air boat to search the creek running adjacent to the complex and to the northeast part of Tulsa. Tulsa Fire Department was also out at the apartment complex Tuesday to take another sonar look into the pond. The pair were seen on video surveillance Friday morning at an area convenience store. They were with their mother at the time. Officers received the initial report the children were missing Friday night. Police are talking to every resident in the complex, knocking on every door, and chasing down every lead. Please be patient with us as we meticulously search this area. If you have any information that could help with this case, please call 918-596-9222 or you can remain anonymous by calling Tulsa Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS.