EXCLUSIVE: Dash cam captures first moments of Javeayah’s reported disappearance

AIKEN, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - News 12 has obtained exclusive dash cam video from the night 4-year-old Javeayah Harris was falsely reported missing.

The footage takes us back to the very beginning of this case — the initial moments on June 30 when deputies were treating this as a missing child investigation.

The first deputy arrives just before 8:50 p.m. On the left side of the frame, deputies can be seen walking through the yard at the home on Hillsboro Street.

What appears to be Michilae Herring is visible in the yard, speaking to the responding deputy.

Deputies begin spreading out across the property with flashlights, searching the grounds as neighbors walk over to help.

At around 9 p.m., Johmarea Harris speeds into the driveway — driving the truck that has remained parked on the property throughout the investigation. He is then shown getting out of the truck, talking to a deputy and sharing information from his phone.

As more deputies arrive and daylight fades, the search quickly expands beyond the home. Video shows officers walking through nearby wooded areas and down dirt roads.

When News 12 arrived on scene around 11 p.m., the search was still underway.

A staging area had been set up at Bethel Baptist Church, where crews were meeting to coordinate the effort.

This video captures what investigators believed at the time was a search for a missing child. The investigation would take a very different turn in the days that followed.

Javeayah’s mother had called 911 on June 30, reporting the 4-year-old had been playing outside and vanished.

What followed was a week-long search that drew hundreds of volunteers, law enforcement from multiple agencies, and national attention.

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Since news first broke about the disappearance and death of 4-year-old Javeayah Harris, the community has continued to show up for her.

On July 4, Aiken County Sheriff Marty Sawyer announced he believed Javeayah had been dead for about a month.

Both of her parents — Herring and Johmarea Harris — were arrested that same day and charged with homicide by child abuse.

Both confessed, according to arrest warrants.

Investigators later announced that some of Javeayah’s remains had been recovered from Cedar Creek Reservoir in Fairfield County.

Authorities allege her body was dissolved with chemicals and poured into the reservoir.

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Javeayah Harris’ name is already written on candles and keepsakes at the growing memorial outside the home where she was reported missing.

Both parents were denied bond on additional charges of destruction and desecration of human remains.

Since the discovery of Javeayah’s remains, communities across the two-state area have held vigils and memorials in her honor.

A growing memorial outside her Hillsboro Street home has drawn mourners from across the CSRA and beyond.

Anyone with video, photographs, or documents related to the case can submit them to the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office at: www.aikensheriffsc.evidence.com/axon/community-request/public/hillsboroharris