# Parents arrested in death of 5-year-old in Pawleys Island > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/search-for-missing-child-in-pawleys-island > Updated: 2026-09-02T14:31:33.000Z. Sources: 8. Developments: 2. Following the tragic discovery of five-year-old Sailor Hayes’ body in a water canal in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, authorities have arrested her parents, John Herb Hayes III and Geordyn Nichole Hayes of Bristol, Virginia. The parents face charges of unlawfully placing a child at risk and willfully abandoning a child. Investigators allege that the parents failed to provide adequate supervision for their daughter, who was nonverbal, autistic, and had a known history of elopement and an affinity for water. According to arrest warrants, the parents allegedly removed a monitoring device from the child prior to leaving Virginia. Furthermore, investigators claim the parents misled search efforts by encouraging the use of tracking technology while knowing the child was not wearing the device, and allegedly directed searchers away from the body of water where the child was eventually located. The parents were arrested in Carter County, Tennessee, and are currently awaiting extradition to Georgetown County. ## Timeline ### 2026-09-02: South Carolina search for missing five-year-old ends in tragedy A large-scale search for five-year-old Sailor Hayes in South Carolina ended tragically after her body was found in a water canal following her disappearance from a vacation home. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/south-carolina-search-for-missing-five-year-old-ends-in-tragedy ### 2026-08-31: Pawleys Island authorities search for missing 5-year-old girl Authorities are conducting a multi-agency search for Sailor Hayes, a nonverbal 5-year-old girl missing from a home in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. 6 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/pawleys-island-authorities-search-for-missing-5-year-old-girl --- Cite as: Parents arrested in death of 5-year-old in Pawleys Island. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/search-for-missing-child-in-pawleys-island