Codi Bigsby

• Missing Since 01/31/2022
• Missing From Hampton, Virginia
• Classification Endangered Missing
• Sex Male
• Race Black
• Date of Birth 01/12/2018 (6)
• Age 4 years old
• Height and Weight 3'0, 60 pounds
• Clothing/Jewelry Description A black bomber jacket, black sweatpants and Spider-Man flip-flops.
• Distinguishing Characteristics African-American male. Black hair, brown eyes.

Details of Disappearance

Codi was last seen asleep at the Buckroe Pointe town homes in the 100 block of Ranalet Drive in Hampton, Virginia at 2:00 a.m. on January 31, 2022. He lived with his father and three brothers, a five-year-old and two-year-old twins. His father, Cory Bigsby, said he woke up to find his son missing. He notified police at 9:00 a.m. that same day.

A photo of Cory is posted with this case summary. In addition to his four children who lived with him on Ranalet Drive, he and his estranged wife have multiple older children living in the local area. Codi disappeared the same day the family was supposed to move to a new house.

Authorities were immediately suspicious of Cory's story and believed Codi may not have disappeared at the time that his father claimed. On February 3, Cory was arrested for seven counts of felony child neglect. He admitted to leaving his children home alone on several occasions in December 2021 and January 2022 for hours at a time, with no way to contact him or emergency services. He said he did this because the children were "too much of a handful" and it didn't occur to him to get a babysitter.

In July 2022, Cory was indicted for a further 23 charges: four counts of child abuse, two counts of child neglect in connection with the child abuse counts, fifteen counts of child neglect for leaving the children home alone, and two counts of child neglect for failure to secure medical attention for an injured child. None of the charges were connected to Codi's actual disappearance, only to Cory's alleged actions in the year prior to his son's disappearance.

Cory is awaiting trial on these charges. If convicted, he could face a maximum term of 162 years in prison. He is the main person of interest in his son's disappearance; investigators stated his account of his son's disappearance did not match the evidence. His attorneys have claimed Cory was mistreated by the police and called the case a "modern-day lynching."

Cory was questioned between 9:30 p.m. on January 31 to 4:45 a.m. the next day, then he was taken to another room and isolated for eight hours. More than twenty times during the interview he said he was tired and wanted to go home, but he was told "going home is not an option" even though he was not under arrest at the time. Authorities also admitted that Cory had invoked his right to legal representation during the interview, twice, and that this was ignored. The detective was removed from the case and put on paid administrative leave as a result of the mishandled interrogation, and another detective was assigned to the case.

It may be worth noting that there is a documented history of domestic violence between Cory and Codi's mother, Dina Kareem. He was charged with assaulting her in 2018 after she told police he had choked her, bitten her and threatened to kill her. The charges were dropped after Kareem stopped cooperating with the investigation and failed to appear for multiple court dates.

In June 2023, Cory was charged with second-degree murder and concealment of a body in Codi's presumed death. Authorities stated they believed Codi was beaten to death by his father prior to being reported missing.

At Cory's trial in March 2024, Codi's brother, now seven years old, testified and said that as a four-year-old he had been unable to wake up Codi and his brother's face was bruised and red, and although Cory said Codi was fine, his brother thought Codi appeared to be dead. This was the last time he ever saw Codi. If the brother's memory is accurate and he was four years old when Codi disappeared, that would mean Codi was last seen sometime before December 24, 2021, the day his brother turned five.

Kareem also testified, saying she had not been in a relationship with Cory since 2019. She said she left her children in Cory's care starting in 2020, after she was hospitalized, and last spoke to Codi in April 2021, nine months before he was reported missing. Kareem was investigated and ruled out as a suspect in her son's disappearance.

Cory maintained his innocence, but was convicted of both murder and concealment of a body. He faces up to 45 years in prison. He is still awaiting trial in the other offenses. The siblings Codi lived with at the time of his disappearance are now in foster care. Foul play is suspected in Codi's disappearance due to the circumstances involved.