Missing boy’s mother losing hope
By Bill Beene
Of the St. Louis American
As more developments emerge in the aftermath of the miraculous discovery of Shawn Hornbeck, along with another more recently abducted child, the mother of still-missing Christian Ferguson fears the worst for her son.
Developments in the Hornbeck and William “Ben” Ownby case include their abductor Michael Devlin being charged with nearly 70 counts of forcible sodomy, two additional counts of kidnapping and one count of armed criminal action.
As the world now knows, Hornbeck, then 11 years old, was abducted Oct. 6, 2002 near his home in Richwoods. Far fewer people are aware of the plight of a still-missing black boy from St. Louis.
Theda Thomas’ then nine-year-old son Christian Ferguson has been missing since June 2003. Ferguson’s father, Dawan Ferguson, told police he was talking on a payphone while his son sat inside his parked SUV, when an assailant drove off with the boy still inside.
The parents of Hornbeck, Pam and Craig Akers, who became activists after the disappearance of their son, helped Thomas search for Christian when he went missing and included his disappearance on their website.
Thomas said she’s happy for the parents of Hornbeck and Ownby. While she believes in miracles, she said her son’s medical condition and the circumstances of his disappearance don’t promise a “miracle” ending.
“I do believe in miracles, but at the same time I’m pretty confident that it won’t turn out that way, because my son has a rare genetic disorder and depends on medication,” said Ferguson’s mother.
At the time of his disappearance, Christian suffered from a blood disease called citrullinemia and received nourishment through a gastrointestinal tube.
Thomas doesn’t buy the boy’s father’s story about his disappearance.
Theda Thomas and her husband Victor Thomas said witnesses told them that the SUV belonging to the boy’s father, Dawan Ferguson, had been parked in Ferguson, where it was later discovered, not in West St. Louis, where the boy was allegedly abducted.
Dawan Ferguson could not be reached for comment.
The Thomas family also said the boy’s father had been charged with filing a false police report, but that accusation was not pursued when St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce transferred the case to St. Louis County and prosecutor Robert McCulloch.
They claim that Joyce assigned the case to the County because Dawan Ferguson had been a processor in her officer, causing a conflict of interest.
The Thomas family also said Connor Ferguson, the younger brother of Christian, told them that the day before the missing child disappeared his gastrointestinal tube (for feeding) had been removed.
The couple said Connor said Christian had been wrapped in a white sheet and had moaned for most of the night. The boy believed his brother to be deceased when the moaning stopped.
Early the next morning – before daylight – Connor said his father took Christian out in a blanket. The father was allegedly on his way to a hospital when he allegedly stopped to use a payphone.
Theda Thomas believes there was foul play and that the alleged abduction of her son was staged.
“His father knew he was ill early that morning and the night before, and the protocol for his illness is, if you think he’s ill, to take him immediately to the hospital and get his numbers checked and they’ll know immediately what to do,” Thomas said.
Theda Thomas said Christian’s father had failed in 2001 to give the boy medication, which resulted in his temporary placement on 100 percent life support.
Thomas said she now fears for the safety of her son Connor. According to a police report and investigation by the Division of Family Services, Connor’s paternal grandmother, Dawana Steffen, poured ice tea on the boy’s head after he ignored her when she told him to “stop walking funny.”
Thomas said the four years Christian has been missing have been a living hell for her.
Thomas said, “Not only am I left to deal with Christian’s disappearance and the circumstances that led up to it, but I’m also fighting for the custody of my surviving son.”