Aberdeen police are investigating the death but have not released details about how Aiden Bevins died or whether anyone could face charges.
ABERDEEN, Wash — The Aberdeen community is mourning the death of 4-year-old Aiden Bevins as investigators continue working to determine how the child died after police found his body buried on a relative’s property earlier this month.
Aberdeen police are investigating the death but have not released details about how Aiden died or whether anyone could face charges.
Across Aberdeen, signs and memorials now honor the young boy, whose death has shaken the small Grays Harbor County community.
Neighbor Zoey Richards said she realized something was wrong when police flooded her neighborhood earlier this month.
“The entire alleyway down there, it’s kind of a street in between two block was pretty much row to row police cars and they had a full-on investigation division or something out there,” Richards said.
Richards said the case has left neighbors stunned.
“That’s absolutely awful honestly, I couldn’t imagine it down here,” she said.
Relatives told KING 5 they called police to perform a welfare check after not seeing Aiden for some time. They said investigators later found the child’s body on the property.
KING 5 was at the scene in the days after investigators found the body and witnessed investigators speaking with a man at the home. KING 5 is not identifying him because police have not charged him.
The tragedy has sparked grief and outrage throughout Aberdeen.
“It’s just beyond devastation – it’s just beyond sick. Beyond human,” Aberdeen resident Debra Johnson said.
On Sunday, community members gathered to remember Aiden, describing him as a young boy with curly hair and an infectious smile.
“It’s devastating news to everyone – especially being a parent myself.” Johnson said.
Aiden’s former foster parents, Gary and Magali Lopez, also spoke publicly for the first time, describing the loss as one they had feared.
The couple cared for Aiden from ages 1 to 3 and told KING 5 they opposed returning him to his biological family.
“Something that we had been dreading, something that we, a fear of ours ever since he left,” Gary Lopez said.
Magali Lopez said seeing Aiden on the news shattered their family.
“And to see his face in the news. Just shattered our world. It’s unbelievable,” she said.
As investigators continue their work, community members say they are waiting for answers and hoping for accountability.
“I sure hope so,” Johnson said when asked whether justice would be served.
The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office said autopsy results remain pending. Investigators say those results could help determine how Aiden died and when.
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