We All Matter News 
Community Reeling After Two Young Girls Found Buried in Suitcases; Mother Charged With Aggravated Murder
An Ohio mother has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder after authorities say the bodies of her young daughters were discovered buried in separate suitcases in a Cleveland neighborhood earlier this week — a devastating case that has shaken families across the region.
Aliyah Henderson, 28, faces charges in the deaths of 8-year-old Mila Chatman and 10-year-old Amor Wilson, who were half-sisters, according to law enforcement officials. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the girls’ identities, noting that DNA testing was used to establish their relationship. The cause of death has not yet been publicly released.
The horrific discovery was made Monday evening by a man walking his dog near East 162nd Street and Midland Avenue, close to Ginn Academy. After spotting what appeared to be a partially buried suitcase in a field, he contacted police. Responding officers uncovered a shallow grave containing a deceased child inside the suitcase. A search of the surrounding area led to the discovery of a second shallow grave and another suitcase with a second body.
Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy Todd described the case as a “terrible, horrific situation,” underscoring the emotional toll the scene has taken on responding officers and the wider community.
“This is a traumatic event for our officers, for the community,” Todd said at a press briefing.
For the girls’ loved ones, the pain is immeasurable. Mila’s father, DeShaun Chatman, said investigators informed him late Wednesday that his daughter had been killed. In a heartbreaking interview, he recounted a years-long effort to regain custody of Mila. He said he had been fighting for five years, filing for emergency custody multiple times, and had not seen his daughter since 2020.
Chatman said he attempted to enlist the help of a child welfare agency to locate his daughter but was unable to do so because he did not know where she was living. Ultimately, Mila was reportedly residing near the very area where her body was found.
“It’s very much horrible,” Chatman said. “I feel useless — I couldn’t save my baby.”
He described Mila as joyful and full of life — a child who loved pink and imagined herself a princess. “She was happy-go-lucky, always smiling,” he said. “She was a kid’s kid.”
Amid the tragedy, authorities reported that another child was found inside a residence connected to the investigation. That child appeared to be in good health and has since been placed in the care of the Department of Children and Family Services.
As Cleveland mourns, the case raises urgent questions about how communities safeguard children and how family courts and child welfare systems respond when parents raise repeated alarms. Too often, families navigating custody disputes and seeking support encounter bureaucratic barriers, delays, and limited resources. Advocates say tragedies like this highlight the need for a more responsive and better-funded child welfare infrastructure that centers children’s safety and well-being.
Every child deserves to grow up safe, cherished, and protected — not lost in a system that struggles to respond before it is too late. As the legal process moves forward, the community is left grieving two vibrant young lives cut short and grappling with the profound responsibility to do better for families in crisis.
The investigation remains ongoing.
