Trigger Warning: This article contains references to child murder that some readers may find distressing.

A seven-year-old Cincinnati boy’s mysterious death has led to murder charges for his mother and two cohabitants. Bound with duct tape and covered in blunt-force trauma, William Evans suffered horrible torture in the months leading to his death.

Officers from the Cincinnati and Norwood Police Departments discovered the boy after responding to a 1 p.m. disturbance call at a residence in the city’s Oakley neighborhood on Thursday, August 6.

“We have somebody that came in and kind of just dropped herself on the floor. She barefooted. She’s saying that her partner’s trying to kill her, that they took her son,” the unnamed caller told the 911 operator. “I’m not sure if she’s in danger or it’s a psych emergency. Kirby Lincoln…she’s saying that he’s hiding him up in the attic of two eight two two Madison road apartments.”

William was found unresponsive inside the apartment closet. The Cincinnati Fire Department responded to the scene, and the victim was pronounced dead shortly after. During their Hamilton County Municipal Court arraignment in Cincinnati on Friday, Aug. 7, prosecutors revealed that the child’s mother, Kaitlin Evans, 38, lived in the residence with Nessa Keaney, 23, and Kirby Rankin, 33, and that all three women co-parented the boy.

A veteran homicide detective told a judge during court proceedings that the young boy had mental disabilities. The three were so secretive about his existence, and nobody in the building even knew that they lived with a little boy. According to prosecutors, he suffered extensive physical abuse, bearing injuries across his face, torso, back, and extremities consistent with beatings from a striking object.

“Impact injuries to the back of the head, some water torture involved. We believe the victim was choked underwater, held underwater for a prolonged period of time. There was some burn torture involved, and the victim was bound, duct-taped in positions that immobilized him.” 

Before William’s death, the three women took their dog to get vaccinated and left the little boy at home alone. Evans, Keaney, and Rankin are each facing charges of murder and child endangerment in connection with the child’s death. A judge set bond at $1.1 million each for three women.

William’s biological father broke down in the courtroom. He revealed that the three women kept the child from him for the last nine months, promising to keep him safe. William’s family says he had autism and ADHD, and he was a brilliant boy who loved animals.

In a conversation with WLWT, William’s grandparents, Mike and Tina Evans, recalled how important the young boy was to their family. William routinely spent every Friday and most Saturdays with his grandparents.

However, according to them, family dynamics shifted dramatically roughly six weeks ago when William confided in his grandparents that he did not want to return home. Following that conversation, his mother, Kaitlin, and her partners barred him from visiting his grandparents. The grandparents were permitted to see William only once more, approximately four weeks ago. During that brief visit, they noticed a minor bruise on his shoulder but saw no further immediate signs of severe physical harm. That encounter marked the last time they saw him alive.

Growing increasingly anxious about the child’s well-being, both sets of grandparents, including those on his father’s side, hired an attorney and retained a private investigator to locate William and check on his safety just days before his death. Mike revealed that he had no idea his grandson had died. He was surprised when he pulled up to the house, only to discover police surrounding the apartment.

“I’d had four hours to come to the realization that might be the case, but it’s just like somebody sucks the wind out of you.”

Disclaimer: The Inquisitr could not independently verify all facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available within the public record and video footage.