Dad Accused of Killing 5-Week-Old Found Dead in Woods, Hours After Pleading for Boy's Safe Return

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Hours after an Alabama couple pleaded for the safe return of their missing infant son, the boy's father has been charged with his murder. On Wednesday, Caleb Michael Whisnand, 32, was charged with reckless manslaughter for the death of 5-week-old son Caleb "C.J." Whisnand Jr., the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office announced.

Hours earlier, Whisnand and the boy's mother, 28-year-old Angela Nicole Gardner, spoke to the media during a press conference and pleaded for help in finding their son. "It would mean everything to us.
The family ain't the same without family, that's for sure,'' Whisnand told reporters, WSFA reports. "It's been taking a toll on everybody."

According to authorities, shortly after the press conference, C.J.'s body was found buried in a remote wooded area of Lowndes County. His cause of death has not been released. On Thursday, authorities announced that prosecutors had upgraded Whisnand's charge to capital murder following his son's autopsy.

According to the sheriff's office, the newborn was reported missing Monday night from a gas station on Wetumpka Highway. During Wednesday's press conference, Gardner told reporters C.J. disappeared while his father was paying for gas. However, an alert issued by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency early Tuesday said the boy had been missing since Saturday.

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