The desperate search for a missing 3-year-old girl from Jackson has ended in tragedy. Authorities confirmed Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, that Janae McGill was found dead in Alabama, just one day after her mother, Shardee McGill, was also discovered deceased.
Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones announced the grim discovery on social media, stating that Janae’s body was located near the area in Epes, Alabama, where her 33-year-old mother’s remains had been recovered Thursday. Shardee was found in a shallow body of water, and investigators have deemed her death “suspicious.”
The cause of Janae’s death has not yet been determined.
Timeline of the case
- Sunday: Shardee and Janae were last seen leaving their Jackson home in a 2017 Chevrolet Equinox.
- Tuesday: The vehicle was found abandoned in Epes, Alabama, unoccupied.
- Thursday: Shardee’s body was discovered in a shallow body of water.
- Friday: Sheriff Jones announced Janae’s body had been located nearby.
During the investigation, Johnathan McGill, Shardee’s husband and Janae’s father, was detained by Alabama law enforcement for questioning but was later released. Officials emphasized that no charges have been filed at this time.
Amber Alert concerns
At a press conference earlier Friday — before Janae was found — Sheriff Jones addressed why an Amber Alert had not been issued. He explained that because Janae was last seen leaving voluntarily with her mother, the case did not meet the statutory definition of an abduction.
“It was not a situation where it was a kidnapping or a custodial kidnapping,” Jones said.
Ongoing investigation
Both deaths remain under investigation by Hinds County and Alabama authorities. Sheriff Jones called the outcome heartbreaking and confirmed that law enforcement is working to determine how both mother and child died.
The tragedy has drawn widespread concern from the Jackson community, where neighbors and friends are mourning the devastating loss of both Shardee and Janae.
