Haleigh Cummings was a bright, cheerful 5 year old girl; a kindergartner at Browning-Pearce Elementary School in Putnam County Florida, she had her whole life ahead of her. Haleigh lived with her 25 year old father, Raymond Cummings, and her little brother; named after their father and called Junior. Raymond's 17 year old girlfriend Misty Croslin also occasionally stayed in the rented mobile home on Green Lane in Satsuma south of Jacksonville.
On February 9, 2009, Raymond left Haleigh and Junior with Misty as he worked the overnight shift at a nearby plant. Misty alleged she put Hayleigh and Junior to bed at 8:15 PM because Hayleigh had school the next day. She claimed she joined the kids in the same bed around 10 PM.
Misty said she awoke just before 3 AM to use the bathroom, however, on the way to the bathroom she noticed the kitchen light was on, and subsequently found the kitchen door propped open. She alleged she ran to the bedroom where the three of them were sleeping and it was at that time she discovered Haleigh missing.
However, Misty didn't call police right away. The 911 call didn't happen until Raymond Cummings arrived home from work that night at 3:27 AM. When police asked her to explain the lack of urgency in alerting law enforcement to Haleigh's disappearance Misty replied she had spent the time looking under the beds for Haleigh. **
When she did finally call police, a portion of her 911 call went into a little more detail about the kitchen door being open:
Dispatcher: Ok, alright, you say the back door was wide open?
Croslin: Yes, with a brick, like there was brick on the floor. Like when I went to sleep the door was not like that.
Dispatcher: Was your back door locked, do you know?
Croslin: Yes, the back door always stays locked.
During the 911 call Raymond Cummings can be heard in the background desperately yelling for his daughter. Misty had a hard time answering some of the dispatcher's questions, like how tall Haleigh was and how much she weighed. Eventually Raymond took the phone from Misty and pleaded with the dispatcher:
“I need somebody to get here now. I just got home from work. My 5-year-old daughter is gone. I need somebody to get here now. I’m telling you, if I find whoever has my daughter before you do I will kill them. I don’t care if I spend the rest of my life in prison. You can put that on recording I don’t care."
Police did eventually arrive at the Green Lane mobile home in southern Putnam County, They immediately began searching the isolated Florida scrubs around the mobile home. The K-9s led investigators to the St John River, located about 100 yards from the home. This prompted a massive search of the river using divers and volunteers in boats.
Law enforcement searched the area on foot, with helicopters, used volunteers, called in members of the state Child Abduction Response Team, as well as reinforcements from the FBI. An Amber Alert was issued, and people came from all over the United States to help search for Haleigh.
People rode on horseback and walked on foot through the thick rural Northeastern Florida scrub, divers searched nearby waters, cars on the main roads were stopped and searched.
Police did everything they could to find Haleigh, including not allowing Raymond and Misty back into the Green Lane mobile home after February 10th. Police searched the home for clues, however, they found no sign of forced entry or any sign of anyone else ever being in the home that night. They did, however, find small inconsistencies in the story Misty Croslin told police that night.
It was also noted in the detectives' notes that Misty had showered just before the police arrived the night of Haleigh's disappearance; detectives found that very strange that she would shower while Haleigh was still missing. **
Misty would first tell police she put the children to bed and eventually joined them in the same bed. She awoke just before 3 am and noticed the kitchen light on and the door propped open, and that's when she noticed Haleigh gone. She told police she believed a stranger came in and took Haleigh.
Police, however, were immediately suspicious of this story; they did not believe that a stranger just happened upon the house. Firstly, the mobile home was in a very isolated area, it's very improbable that someone who didn't know the house was there would just find it randomly, and secondly the police did not believe someone could come into the same room Misty was sleeping in and take the child out of the bed without her waking up or hearing something. Misty then changed her story and said Haleigh was sleeping in a different bed in the same room, however police were still leery.
Detectives knew early on they were looking for a suspect closer to home. Haleigh's father Raymond was able to be ruled out pretty quickly; he had an alibi that was verified by video surveillance and coworkers. Although police acknowledged that Raymond had a history of being violent with the women in his life, they believed his cooperation was genuine.
Misty Croslin however, was a person of interest and could never be eliminated as a suspect.
Detectives interviewed Misty and Raymond separately the night Haleigh went missing. After the interviews were over police led Raymond to the room where Misty was, and left the couple alone to talk. In the video recently released by police you see Raymond enter the room and sit facing Misty. He quietly, and unemotionally, tells her, "You didn't wake up."
Misty, crying, tells Raymond, "I would never let nothing happen to her if I knew something. I wouldn't let someone just take her."
"You didn't get out of bed," Raymond says flatly, "You sure you didn't unlock the door?"
Misty responds, "I didn't even hear anything." **
Detectives eventually confronted Misty about the small inconsistencies in her story and she was subsequently given a lie detector test; Misty claimed she passed this test, however, law enforcement officials said otherwise.
Months after Haleigh's disappearance, and many police interviews later, Misty implicated her cousin, Joe Overstreet, and her brother Hank "Tommy" Croslin Jr; claiming the two men were in the house that night, Misty alleged she witnessed the pair carrying Haleigh's "lifeless" body out of the mobile home and to the St John River.
It was discovered Overstreet had violated his parole by leaving Tennessee and coming to Florida, coincidentally at the exact same time as Haleigh's disappearance. Overstreet and a friend were actually stopped at a checkpoint that was set up to look for Haleigh on February 10th. Overstreet said they were leaving Florida and going back to Tennessee. Police searched Joe's car that night and said there was no sign of Haleigh in the car, however, Overstreet's name would continue to come up during the investigation.
Seven months after the investigation began, Tommy Croslin Jr would tell police for the first time that he had actually gone by the mobile home that night. Tommy said Raymond Cummings, Haleigh's father, called him and asked him to go see if Misty was at the house. According to Tommy, Ronald couldn't get a hold of Misty and was worried she had left the home. Tommy told police he went by to check on his sister in the early evening, around 8:45 PM, and no one answered the door. He said the house was dark and quiet, and he believed nobody was there. Police were obviously very interested in this story, although they were hesitant to believe Tommy since he had never said anything like this in any of his interviews previously. When questioned about her brother's statement, Misty would tell them she was probably asleep when he came by, or that he must be confused about what time he actually came over.
Misty's story has continued to change, and police still believe she is the key to unlocking this case, that if she would just tell the truth Haleigh could finally have some justice.
That has not happened yet, however, Haleigh's father Raymond Cummings, Misty Croslin, her brother Tommy Croslin Jr, Misty's friend Donna Brock, and Raymond's cousin Hope Sykes, would all be charged with drug trafficking in late 2010 after Misty and Raymond were pulled over and cops discovered over 300 prescription pills in their vehicle. The end result of the ensuing investigation was the five adults being arrested and all facing a slew of charges. Strangely enough, no one involved denied being a part of the drug trafficking ring, however, all of them were still tight lipped about Haleigh's disappearance. Misty Croslin told a similar version of her last story, saying her brother and cousin definitely were at the house that night, however, she has never given any details to how Haleigh was killed, or what actually happened that February night in 2009.
Most of the people involved in the drug ring were sentenced to 15 years in prison, Misty Croslin was sentenced to 25 years in prison for her part in the trafficking case.
**There are a few things about this story that stand out to me. First being Misty's excuse why she waited to call police. She claimed she was looking for Haleigh under the beds, however, it is clear from the police pictures (see below) that the mattresses were on the floor. Why would someone believe a child would be under a mattress that is on the floor?
**Another thing that really stands out to me is the recently released police interrogation room video. Raymond Cummings seems completely emotionless, which could be more of a sign of shock than guilt. The way he says flatly to her 'you didn't wake up' almost sounds like he's trying to convince himself. And if you listen to Misty's response she doesn't actually answer his question. She simply responds 'I wouldn't let nothing happen to her if I knew something, I wouldn't let someone just take her.' It's definitely an unusual response to 'you didn't wake up'. When he says it again she basically says 'I didn't hear nothing', which again, doesn't answer the question.
{In my opinion whatever happened to Haleigh was an accident. I don't believe that Misty Croslin had the intention of killing Haleigh, or even hurting her. I believe she was partying with her cousin and her brother and something happened that night; Haleigh either ingested something and died, someone hit her and she hit her head and died, she choked on something or drowned…SOMETHING happened, an accident I believe, and Haleigh died and the three of them panicked. Misty could have even been alone when Haleigh died and called Tommy and Joe Overstreet over to the mobile home to help her dispose of Haleigh's body. It explains why Misty didn't call police right away, why she'd take a bath right before Ronald came home and they called the police, why Joe Overstreet booked it out of town immediately and went home to Tennessee - where he knew he was in trouble for violating parole. Unfortunately, this case is stalled until either new evidence surfaces or one of the people involved speaks up and tells the truth about what happened that night to Haleigh.}
Police Photo Showing Cinderblock Propping Kitchen Door Open
Raymond Cumming's Residence 02/10/2009
The room Misty Croslin, Raymond Cummings, Junior and Haleigh shared in the mobile home in Satsuma, Florida. You can clearly see the mattresses are on the floor, why would Misty tell police she was looking for Haleigh under the beds?
Haleigh Cummings, 5 with her father, Raymond Cummings, 25
Haleigh Cummings Age Progressed Photos, Age 12 (left) Age 17 (Right)
Raymond Cummings, 26, arrested in 2010 on unrelated drug charges
Misty Croslin, 18, arrested in 2010 on unrelated drug charges
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