LEXINGTON COUNTY, SC — An 11-month-old boy was rescued alive Tuesday after authorities in South Carolina say he had been buried in a dog crate for about 24 hours during a frantic search for him and his father. Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon said the child, Koah Sharpe, was found buried under shallow dirt in the woods and was still breathing when deputies and first responders reached him.
Koon said the baby was wrapped in a towel and was “clinging to life” when he was uncovered. He described the rescue as a moment that turned an urgent search into what he called a celebration that the child survived. Koah was taken to a hospital for treatment, and deputies said he is expected to keep recovering.
Search began after father and baby disappeared from a home visit
Authorities said the search started Monday afternoon after Koah was left in the care of his father, 25-year-old Michael Comer, at the child’s mother’s home while she ran an errand. Another caregiver was on the way to the house, but by the time that person arrived, Comer and the baby were gone, according to Koon.
The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department said deputies spent Monday looking for the pair and later found Comer in the Batesburg-Leesville area late that night. The baby was not with him. Koon said Comer was found in an outbuilding at a house in Batesburg and was not willing or able to give much information then about where the child was being held.
Nearly 100 responders joined the search through the woods
Koon said roughly 100 first responders were involved in the hunt for the child. The search intensified Tuesday afternoon near Comer’s father’s house, where crews spotted freshly disturbed dirt about 50 yards into the woods. That discovery prompted responders to stop and dig carefully, hoping they had found a possible hiding place.
As crews probed the area, they heard Koah crying from underground, Koon said. The sheriff said the sound pushed everyone on scene to move quickly. Responders dug the baby out of the crate and brought him into the open, ending a search that had stretched through the night and into the next day.
Sheriff says the child may have survived because of an air pocket
Investigators believe Koah may have been buried for around 24 hours, based on what they learned about the father’s movements, Koon said. The sheriff added that the towel wrapped around the infant may have helped create an air pocket, which he believes may have kept the boy alive while he was underground.
Koon did not describe the full condition of the child beyond saying he was conscious enough to cry when rescuers reached him. He said the baby is now receiving medical care and that authorities hope he will make a full recovery. The sheriff also said he believes the boy will be too young to remember the ordeal later in life.
Father was arrested on burglary and resisting charges
Comer was arrested after being located by deputies, though the sheriff said investigators are still working with the local solicitor’s office on whether additional charges are warranted. For now, Comer faces burglary and resisting arrest charges, according to Koon.
Authorities have not publicly detailed what led them to those initial charges, but the sheriff’s office said the criminal case remains active as investigators sort through the timeline of events. The key focus on Tuesday, Koon said, was getting the child out alive and then making sure he received medical attention as quickly as possible.
Sheriff calls the rescue a reason to celebrate
Koon repeatedly framed the outcome as a rare and grateful one after a search that could easily have ended differently. He thanked the first responders who joined the effort and said the child’s survival was the outcome everyone had hoped for from the start.
The sheriff said the discovery in the woods turned a grave situation into one of relief for the people who had spent the previous day looking for the missing infant. For Lexington County officials, the rescue closed a tense search with a living child, a hospital transfer, and a criminal investigation still moving forward.
