Search for missing Midlands mom & her 2-year-old son results in murder charge
A man has been charged with murder after the disappearance of a Midlands mom and her 2-year-old son nearly two years ago, according to police.
Jonas Jerry Washington, 26, was taken into custody this week after police say he killed Sophia Van Dam, then 20, and kidnapped her son Matteo, then 2, in 2023 in Beaufort County, according to a news release.
The pair were reported missing to Sumter police by Sophia’s mother, Theresa Van Dam of Beaufort, on June 28, 2023, after not hearing from them for several days.
Before the disappearance, Washington was living with Dam and her son in Sumter, a news release said.
Multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Sumter Police Department and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division joined forces to help locate the mother and son.
The one-year anniversary of the pair’s disappearance came and went without public notice, but police insisted they hadn’t given up and reported “some progress” in the investigation.
Now, a year later, police say Washington was taken into custody in Georgia and was booked at a local detention center.
Washington will appear before a Circuit Court judge at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Sumter County Judicial Center, according to the release.
While Washington faces a murder charge in the death of Dam, the whereabouts and condition of her son, Matteo, are unclear.
Police say they are continuing to investigate and encourage anyone with information to contact the Sumter Police Department at 803-436-2700.
Tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC, online at P3tips.com, through the P3tips app for Apple or Android devices, or to SLED at tips@sled.sc.gov.
