A missing six-year-old boy whose mother claimed she sold him at a Texas supermarket because he had a “demon in him” is believed to be dead.
Everman Police Chief Craig Spencer said Thursday the search for Noel Rodriguez-Alvarez is now a death investigation and they are trying to locate and recover his body.
Noel was reported missing on March 20 when Texas Child Protective Services received an anonymous tip that he had not been seen since November 2022.
Spencer said Noel was being used by his mother, Cindy Rodriguez-Singh, to receive government benefits. He was last seen giving birth to twin siblings “unhealthy and malnourished” in October 2022.
His mother reportedly called the boy “nasty” and “possessed” or “has a demon inside of her” and feared he might hurt the newborn twins.
Rodriguez-Singh and Arshdeep Singh, the boy’s stepfather, flew from Dallas-Fort Worth to India with their six other children two days after he was reported missing. But Noel, who suffers from a lung condition among other things, was not with them.
Noel Rodriguez-Alvarez, 6, was reported missing March 20 after Texas Child Protective Services received an anonymous tip that he had not been seen since November 2022
Noel’s mother, Cindy Rodriguez-Singh, is said to have told her mother that she sold Noel to someone at a Fiesta Market store, but police say there is no evidence to support the rumour
Police said Friday they dug up part of a concrete patio on the property where the family lived in a shed behind another home on Wisteria Drive
Noel’s mother and stepfather are now facing abandonment and child endangerment charges, and authorities are working to extradite them to the United States, police said.
They are believed to still be in India. Investigators are working to identify locations to find Noel’s body, Chief Spencer said in an update Thursday.
“I understand that this is not the news that we were all hoping and praying for,” Spencer said. “We must continue to stand together as a community and fight for Noel.”
Spencer said Noel was last seen by a professional in July 2022. He subsequently missed several doctor’s appointments, prompting the government to send out warning letters that the benefits Rodriguez-Singh was receiving would end.
Rodriguez-Singh then reportedly asked another mother to borrow her child to pose as Noel at the doctor’s, saying he had COVID.
She was known by relatives to be abusive and neglectful towards Noel, Spencer said. A relative saw her hitting Noel for wanting to drink water because she didn’t want him to wet his diaper. Other relatives said she often withheld water and food from him because she didn’t like changing him.
Police said Thursday the search for Noel Rodriguez-Alvarez is now a death investigation and they are trying to locate and recover his body
Everman Police Chief Craig Spencer said they believe the mother made the comments and made up stories that she sold him to mislead the investigation
A relative later told police Rodriguez-Singh told her mother that she sold Noel to someone at a Fiesta Market store, according to a copy of the search warrant obtained by Star-Telegram.
Spencer has since said there is no evidence to support rumors the child was sold, adding that they believe the mother made the comments to mislead the investigation.
In the search warrant, Rodriguez-Singh did not say when the alleged transaction of her child took place, but said the woman she sold Noel to threatened to report her to CPS if she tried to get him back.
The search warrant also found that Noel’s uncle Cantarino Rodriguez told Everman police he saw Rodriguez-Singh, his sister, molest the child.
The uncle said that when he last saw Noel about a year ago, he confronted Rodriguez-Singh when he saw her hit the boy with her car keys after he drank water because she didn’t want him to change his diaper wet.
Rodriguez-Singh and his stepfather Arshdeep Singh flew to India from Dallas-Fort Worth two days before an Amber Alert was issued. But Noel, who suffers from a lung condition among other things, was not with them. He still hasn’t been found
Noel, who has disabilities including a lung condition, was not with them and was last seen by a professional in July 2022. In October 2022, he was described as “malnourished.”
Authorities conducted a wellness check at the family’s home on Wisteria Drive on March 20, during which Rodriguez-Singh told police the boy was with his biological father in Mexico.
Police at the time said they had no reason to believe she was lying but said they had started avoiding her.
Spencer has since given the update that Homeland Security confirmed there was no record of Noel crossing the border into Mexico. He also said the birth father was cooperating with the investigation and had not seen Noel.
Rodriguez-Singh then secured travel visas for herself, her husband and their six other children – all except Noel – and flew to India via Turkey on March 22 to continue to evade police questioning.
A search warrant was issued last week at the family home, a converted shed in the backyard of a Charles Parson home. The family also used a few rooms in the main house.
Parson has also worked with investigators, Spencer said.
Authorities conducted a wellness check at the family’s home on Wisteria Drive on March 20, during which Rodriguez-Singh told police the boy was with his biological father in Mexico
A search warrant was issued last week at the family home, a converted shed in the backyard of a Charles Parson home
Conditions in the converted shed, but it’s not clear if the mess is from the search
Police excavated part of the concrete patio at the property, which they discovered had recently been poured and was paid for by Rodriguez-Singh, even though she didn’t own the property, Spencer said.
The search and excavation found no clues that would lead them to Noel.
Police have issued arrest warrants for Rodriguez-Singh for a misdemeanor they are accused of filing a false report and violating the terms of their probation.
But the misdemeanor charge wasn’t enough to warrant extradition, Spencer. Now, however, the new charges mean the mother and stepfather are on the run and subject to extradition to the United States, Spencer said.
The FBI, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, the Alliance for Children and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children are all involved in the investigation.
Anyone with information is urged to call 817-293-2923 or email [email protected].