Sheriff: Missing Wis. Boy Found Dead By Officer

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The 2-year-old boy missing in western Wisconsin for more than 24 hours was found dead Wednesday night, authorities say.

Polk County Sheriff Peter Johnson said that a law enforcement officer found Isaiah Theis deceased just after 10 p.m. The boy, who is from the town of Centuria, had been reported missing by his family on Tuesday night.

The sheriff said no more details will be released until 10 a.m. Thursday morning.

The Search

The news of the boy's death comes at the end of a day when a reported 450 volunteers searched for him in 90-plus degree heat, walking shoulder to shoulder throughout a 2-square-mile area close to the boy's home.

Isaiah went missing at about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday from the 1500 block of 180th Street after playing with his brother, according to his father, Justin Theis.

Since that night, volunteers and law enforcement agencies have searched for Isaiah on foot, with the aid of dogs, and in the air, only stopping the search during overnight hours.

The area that volunteers searched and re-searched Wednesday held corn stalks up to 6 feet tall, ponds and woodlands.  The hundreds of volunteers searched in groups of 10 or 12, taking turns combing through the area and resting so as to keep healthy in the sweltering heat.

Officials said Wednesday -- before Isaiah's body was found -- that there was no indication of foul play.