South Carolina Baby Found Alive After 24 Hours Buried In Crate
An 11-month-old South Carolina boy who vanished Monday was found alive on Tuesday after spending roughly 24 hours buried underground inside a dog crate, and his father has been taken into custody, authorities said.[1]
Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon identified the child as Koah Sharpe and said deputies uncovered him in a 2-by-2-foot wire dog crate, wrapped in a towel and buried in the ground, "crying" and "clinging to life" when they reached him.[1] Koon said the towel and the crate's open slats likely created a small air pocket that helped Koah survive, and he credited cold overnight weather with possibly extending the boy's chances, adding that he hopes Koah, at 11 months old, "will not remember much about this as he grows older."[1]
Koah was reported missing Monday after his father, 25-year-old Michael A. Comer, left with him from a location in Lexington County where Comer's mother had briefly stepped away while they waited for another caregiver, according to Koon.[1] The disappearance triggered an intensive search that drew county deputies, state officials and the FBI, and investigators later obtained video from Batesburg-Leesville, South Carolina, showing Comer without the baby before his arrest.[1] After Comer was taken into custody, he "did not have much to say" about his son's location, Koon said, and officers eventually found the buried crate on Tuesday, November 11, about a day after Koah was believed to have been put underground.[1]
State court records reviewed by The New York Times show Comer pleaded guilty earlier this year to domestic violence and aggravated breach of peace in South Carolina, a history that will likely draw scrutiny as investigators examine what led up to Koah's disappearance and burial.[1] Authorities have not publicly detailed a possible motive, charging decisions or the child's current medical condition beyond saying he was "clinging to life" when found, and officials have suggested that the full account of the baby's ordeal may take time to piece together from interviews, records and forensic evidence.
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📌 Key Facts
- Authorities in South Carolina identified the rescued baby as 11‑month‑old **Koah Sharpe** and his father as **Michael A. Comer, 25**, according to The New York Times.
- Lexington County Sheriff **Jay Koon** said that Koah was found on Tuesday, November 11, 2026, after about 24 hours underground, and that he was "crying" and "clinging to life" when officers uncovered the crate, as reported by The New York Times.
- Koah was discovered buried in a **2‑by‑2‑foot dog crate with open wire slats**, wrapped in a towel that likely helped create an air pocket, according to the New York Times account of the rescue.
- Sheriff Koon said the baby had been taken on Monday, November 10, 2026, after **Comer’s mother** briefly left him and the child while they waited for another caregiver, triggering a search that involved county authorities, state officials and the **F.B.I.**, as described in The New York Times report.
- Before his arrest, **Michael A. Comer** was captured on video in **Batesburg-Leesville, South Carolina**, without the baby, and Sheriff Koon said Comer "did not have much to say" about Koah’s location once he was taken into custody, according to The New York Times.
- State court records cited by **The New York Times** show that Comer had previously pleaded guilty earlier in 2026 to **domestic violence and aggravated breach of peace** in South Carolina state court records.
- Sheriff **Jay Koon** told reporters that cold weather conditions may have helped Koah survive and expressed hope that at 11 months old he "will not remember much about this as he grows older," according to The New York Times coverage.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- The New York Times confirms the baby's full name as Koah Sharpe and the father's full name as Michael A. Comer, age 25.
- The article specifies that Koah was buried in a 2-by-2-foot dog crate with open wire slats, wrapped in a towel, which likely created an air pocket.
- Sheriff Jay Koon said Koah was found on Tuesday, November 11, 2026, after about 24 hours underground and described him as 'crying' and 'clinging to life' when officers uncovered the crate.
- The Times notes that Koah was taken on Monday, November 10, 2026, after Comer's mother briefly left him and the child while they waited for another caregiver, prompting a county-, state- and FBI-assisted search.
- Sheriff Koon stated that Comer was seen on video in Batesburg-Leesville, South Carolina, without the baby prior to his arrest and that Comer 'did not have much to say' about the child's location when taken into custody.
- The story adds Comer’s prior criminal history, reporting that he pleaded guilty earlier in 2026 to domestic violence and aggravated breach of peace under South Carolina state court records.
- Koon told reporters that cold weather conditions may have helped Koah survive and expressed hope that at 11 months old he 'will not remember much about this as he grows older.'