Qua’mere Sincere Rogers
Qua'mere, circa 2008; Damion Davis in 2009; Davis in 2012
- Missing Since 11/01/2008
- Missing From Syracuse, New York
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Male
- Race Black
- Date of Birth 06/06/2005 (19)
- Age 3 years old
- Height and Weight 2'5, 30 pounds
- Distinguishing Characteristics African-American male. Black hair, brown eyes. Qua'mere's nickname is Quatti.
Details of Disappearance
Qua'mere was born in Syracuse, New York when his mother was sixteen years old. His mother stated the child's presumed father, Damion Davis, was extremely abusive physically and lied to her about his name and age; he told her he was eighteen years old when in fact he was in his late thirties.
The couple met in 2004, when Qua'mere's mother was fifteen. They lived together in an apartment in the 100 block of south Carbon Street in Syracuse after Qua'mere's birth. In 2006, the child's mother left and returned to her family. She never saw her son again, but she lied to the Department of Social Services and said Qua'mere was living with her.
In July 2009, the police received a tip that Davis knew the whereabouts of a missing child. Photos of Davis are posted with this case summary.
When interviewed, he said he had given Qua'mere to a man in Brooklyn, New York sometime during July 2007. He said he believed the man was named Yusef Ben Ali and he had never met him before. Ali was reportedly a member of the United Nation of Moors, also known as the Nuwaubians, a black power group.
Davis said he was unemployed and that Ali promised the Moors would take care of Qua'mere until Davis was stable again. He believed the group may have taken Qua'mere to Georgia. Ali gave him a phone number to call, but it turned out to be out of service.
Authorities later determined that Qua'mere was last seen in Syracuse in late November 2008, nearly a year and a half after Davis claimed to have given him away.
Davis uses many aliases, including the names Yakeef Davis, Rakeef Davis, Zayquan Ross and Zayquan Rose; he rarely uses his real name. Authorities stated they don't believe his explanation as to Qua'mere's disappearance.
There was initially some confusion as to just when Qua'mere disappeared and how old he was; some reports give his age at the time as between eight months and one year, and sometimes the date of disappearance is given as December 1, 2008 or sometime in 2006.
In December 2009, Davis was charged with child abandonment, third-degree rape and endangering the welfare of a child. The latter two charges were for his sexual relationship with Qua'mere's underage mother, and the child abandonment charge was for Qua'mere. In April 2010, however, the child abandonment charge was dropped.
Davis assaulted another woman with a metal pick in October 2010. The following year, he was convicted of several charges relating to the attack and sentenced to one and a third to four years in prison.
Mustafa Burrell was convicted of assaulting Edward Phillips in 2011; the attack was supposedly related to Qua'mere's disappearance.
Both men are friends of Davis and they had been roommates at one time, and Phillips allegedly cared for Qua'mere on a regular basis. Burrell stabbed Phillips in the neck in December 2008, allegedly because he was asking too many questions about Qua'mere's whereabouts.
This was over six months before the child was reported missing. Burrell was convicted of second-degree assault and sentenced to the maximum term of seven years in prison.
DNA tests in September 2011 proved that, contrary to expectations, Davis was not Qua'mere's biological father. Both he and the child's mother had believed he was. The rape prosecution went forward regardless. In April 2012, Davis was convicted and sentenced to the maximum term of one and a third to four years in prison, to be served consecutive to his other sentences.
Investigators believe Qua'mere was killed, and stated they might file homicide charges even if he is never located. His case remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Syracuse Police Department 315-442-5111
Updated 6 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated April 17, 2012; details of disappearance updated.