‘Kidnapped’ 7-year-old had really been beaten and died weeks prior, OH officials say
_fitted.png "Hershall Creachbaum, 7, died in Ohio before he was reported missing weeks later, according to officials.")
Warning: This report contains graphic details some may find disturbing.
Two people are in jail after the remains of a 7-year-old boy who was reported kidnapped were found in Ohio.
Around 3:45 a.m. July 12, Dayton police were called to a home for reports of a kidnapping, Dayton Police Chief Kamran Afzal said at a July 14 news conference.
Crews searched the area for 7-year-old Hershall Creachbaum, but as the investigation unfolded, it was determined the boy was not missing, but had been dead for several weeks, Afzal said.
Investigators received information that led them a few blocks away from the home, and Hershall’s remains were found near U.S. 35, according to Afzal.
Hershall’s mother Ashley Johnson, 36, and her boyfriend, Michael Kendrick, 39, who called 911 and reported Hershall missing, were arrested, Afzal said.
What happened to Hershall?
Afzal did not detail the circumstances surrounding Hershall’s death, but court records provided some insight on what the couple said happened to the boy, who was a wheelchair user and living with disabilities.
Initially, Kendrick told police he believed Hershall was kidnapped off the front porch by a man he was with, a criminal complaint said. However, after interviewing both Johnson and Kendrick, investigators learned that’s not what happened.
Johnson told investigators that Hershall died in late May while she was in the hospital and he was under the care of Kendrick, the complaint said. She said Kendrick initially told her the boy died of natural causes.
However, Kendrick said while drinking and in an argument over the phone, he punched Hershall twice and pushed him down, causing his body to “bounce off the floor” and striking other body parts, court records said.
Kendrick said Hershall died the next day in the shower, according to the complaint. He said he kept his body in the house until it began to smell, then he put his body in a deep freezer, according to court documents.
Court records went on to say that Kendrick took Hershall’s body out of the freezer, placed it in a suitcase and dumped it in a grassy field near train tracks, the complaint said. He went back a few weeks later and gathered Hershall’s bones and put them in a bag and moved the remains to the location where they were later found, officials said.
“This callousness shown in this situation toward this child is horrendous and truly evil,” Afzal said.
Kendrick is charged with tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse. Johnson is charged with obstructing justice and failure to report death. Afzal said other charges may be brought forth depending on forensic examination of Hershall’s remains.
“We can’t bring Hershall back but at least we can bring justice to Hershall,” Afzal said.
Hershall’s dad told WDTN he’s still processing what happened.
“I can’t really describe it any other way. Heartbroken, just heartbroken,” Hershall Creachbaum Sr. told the news outlet. “It’s just one of the things in life, I can’t really, I haven’t even processed any of it.”
United Rehabilitation Services, a Dayton-area nonprofit that serves people with disabilities and special needs, said in a Facebook post that Hershall “should’ve been safe.”
“His death is heartbreaking—and a painful reminder that children with disabilities are among the most vulnerable in our communities. His life mattered. And we must all do better,” the post said.
This story was originally published July 16, 2025 at 1:01 PM with the headline "‘Kidnapped’ 7-year-old had really been beaten and died weeks prior, OH officials say."
