Searches For Missing 11-Year-Old Unsuccessful

Investigators moved their search for the body of an 11-year-old boy whose mother was found dead last week to an area just south of route 121 in Clarksburg, Maryland. Police in Montgomery County came up empty-handed Sunday night, saying they had found "nothing significant" in their combing of the area.

On Monday, about 20 officers and volunteers searched the area of the Magruder Branch Trail in Damascus, Md., and the land surrounding Comsat Drive in Germantown, according to AP.  The dog teams suggest searchers are looking for a body, but Montgomery county Police Captain Paul Starks says they can't be sure.

“From the very beginning we've held out hope that young William will be found alive," says Starks. "However, there's the reality with these types of investigations that sometimes that isn't the case.” 

Starks adds investigators are continuing to pick up leads, and tips are continuing to come in about William's disappearance. Police had originally believed McQuain's body may be located in a wooded area in one of the parks. Both are located in the upper portion of the county not far from the boy's Germantown home.

"As information develops, the department is bound and has to be diligent in following up that information," Starks says. 

The boy's mother, Jane McQuain, was found beaten and stabbed to death inside her home in Germantown last week. Her estranged husband, Curtis Lopez, has been charged in the slaying . He made his first appearance in court Monday and waived extradition in North Carolina. He is set to head back to Maryland to face charges.

Court records show police in Charlotte, N.C., zeroed in on Lopez after his companion was discovered driving McQuain's SUV. Police found Lopez at a motel and charged him in the killing.