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Adult suspect in stolen car/missing girl case appears in Rock Island County Court

The sole adult suspect in an incident involving a missing 4-year-old girl – later found safe – and a stolen SUV appeared Tuesday morning in Rock Island County Court. Jaron Bailey-Harris, 18, faces charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and possession of a stolen vehicle, court records show. Bailey-Harris, who had at least one relative in the courtroom, appeared in a hearing that took about two minutes. Our Quad Cities News crew heard Bailey-Harris answer questions from the judge, saying 'No, sir' and 'Yes, sir.' Bailey-Harris, who has pleaded not guilty, waived his preliminary hearing. Now the case is scheduled for pretrial conferences on Feb. 27 in Rock Island County Court. He is being held without bond in Rock Island County Jail. A stolen car and a missing child Bailey-Harris and four juveniles were arrested in connection with the disappearance of a 4-year-old girl who later was found safe, according to a news release from Rock Island Police. Shortly after 6 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, a brown Saturn Outlook was stolen from the 1300 block of 14½ Street with 4-year old Blessing Aoci still in the back seat, police say. Officers responded to the area within minutes and started a search. About 14 minutes later, the stolen SUV was found unoccupied in the area of 8th Street and 15th Avenue. Immediately, information and a picture were posted about the missing child on theRock Island Police Department's Facebook page, which was shared just under 43,000 times, the release says. Illinois State Police were contacted to issue an Amber Alert, which was later sent to cell phones by the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). A command post was established in the area of 15th Street and 15th Avenue using the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS) Unified Command Post Vehicle. Officers canvassed thearea for Blessing while the Rock Island and Moline police and the Rock Island County Sheriff's Office flew drones to try to find her. Later, search efforts were focused on the blocks surrounding the area from which the car was stolen. They included voluntary searches of residences and property. Assisting in the search were the Rock Island County Sheriff's Department; Moline, Milan, Davenport and Illinois State police; the FBI; the U. S. Marshals Service; neighbors and volunteers. For almost nine hours, teams of law enforcement and volunteers combed the neighborhood with no sign of Blessing. Four juveniles also were arrested A 16-year old boy faces charges of kidnapping and possession of a stolen vehicle A 16-year-old boy faces a charge of possession of a stolen vehicle A 15-year-old girl faces a charge of possession of a stolen vehicle A 14-year-old girl faces a charge of possession of a stolen vehicle. Rock Island Police Chief Tim McCloud sat down with Our Quad Cities News to discuss the search and the case. 'I know they want answers — and we do as well — but it's important to remember that we have a 4-year-old victim that just experienced a very traumatic event,' McCloud said. 'So how we come to a complete understanding of what happened is going to take a very delicate and patient response.' 'We were in direct communication with the state's attorney's office and Dora Villareal while this was going on. So she played an active role in this as we are presenting evidence and determining charges — and they may be amended later. But this is what we have so far,' McCloud said. 'And I would say that some of the tips that were brought in — some of our leads that were generated from when we went to track down some of the other stolen vehicles — that just led us to more and more people that were involved and other charges that came as a result.' Blessing was located in apparent good health. She was immediately reunited with her mother and then transported by the Rock Island Fire Department to Unity Point Trinity for evaluation. 'Everybody is just immensely relieved,' McCloud said. 'You know, it was exhausting, it was emotionally exhausting — the entire process. And I can say that I hope we never go through anything like this ever again.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.