HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A body recovered from a Pasadena bayou on March 20 has been confirmed to be that of missing 2-year-old Nadia Lee, according to the medical examiner's office.
Nadia was last seen alive on Oct. 16. Her father, 26-year-old Jyron Lee, has been charged with two counts of capital murder. Jyron is accused of killing his daughter and wife, Nancy Reed.
Nadia's cause of death has yet to be determined.
Body found
On Monday, authorities said search crews found human remains in Vince Bayou in Pasadena.
They said they believe the remains are those of Nadia Lee, although official identification is pending an autopsy.
Reed's death
Jyron Lee is accused of killing Reed, 22, at the Sonesta Extended Stay Suites on Bay Area Boulevard in southeast Houston on Oct. 18. Investigators said the deadly fight started as an argument over custody of the couple's children. Police were called to the motel to check on them, but eventually left when they said they thought everything was resolved.
A couple of hours later, police were called again. That's when they found Reed, who had been choked. She was taken to an area hospital, where she died. Jyron Lee told police that he was trying to stop her from hurting one of their children.
"He thought she was choking the baby or the child," HPD Lt. Wilkens said at the time. "Not sure which one yet. He got behind her to put her in a chokehold to stop her. She went unconscious and that's when he called us."
Reed's family said she was staying at the motel because she was trying to get away from Jyron.
Investigators said the couple's five other daughters were turned over to Child Protective Services.
Timeline
Houston police said they were searching for Nadia, who was last seen at Jyron's apartment complex in Pasadena.
They believed from this point forward that Nadia was the victim of foul play.
The girl was last seen around 8 p.m. that Sunday (Oct. 16, 2022). Investigators said there was DNA evidence that a crime happened at the apartment.
Search efforts continued for Nadia. Texas EquuSearch founder Tim Miller said his biggest fear was that the girl's body would never be found.
Jyron's sister said she hadn't spoken to her brother in two years. She said her brother and Reed were in a toxic relationship but she never thought he would kill her.
Court records revealed new information about the relationship between Lee and Reed.
Even before Nadia was born, there was a history of problems in the relationship. Reed had even written a letter to a judge asking for help.
The search for Nadia moved to a landfill on private property in the Alvin area.
Texas EquuSearch said they were digging in the landfill for any possible sign of the missing girl. A crew of nearly 20 people and lots of equipment assembled at the search area.
Officials said the area they were searching had actually been roped off for about a week and is about the size of a football field. They also said it was possible they needed to dig about eight feet deep.
Weeks later, search crews restarted the search for Nadia. They focused their search efforts along the bayou across from Lee's apartment complex.
Miller said he thought Nadia's body was possibly put in a container.
Lee is charged with murder in his daughter's death.
Lee's bond was raised to $1.85 million.