Cause of death revealed for 7-year-old boy found tortured, duct-taped in closet

CINCINNATI (WXIX/Gray News) — The cause of death has been revealed for a 7-year-old Cincinnati boy found duct-taped in a closet.

William Michael Evans-Ellis died from blunt force trauma to the head, Hamilton County Coroner Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco announced Tuesday. The coroner noted he had numerous other injuries.

“We always say we expect the worst, and sometimes, we get it,” Sammarco said.

William’s body was found Thursday afternoon in an Oakley apartment.

Sammarco said the home was filled with toys; she even had to walk through a room full of LEGOS to get to the bedroom where William was found. She mentioned there were no photos of the young boy in the house.

Inside a bedroom closet, William’s body was found, bound by tape. Enough tape, the coroner said, that would have prevented him from escaping.

The initial sight of the young boy’s dead body was enough to make Sammarco completely stop.

“[I] opened the closet door, and just froze for a while,” Sammarco said.

William had injuries to several areas of his head, according to the coroner.

He also had a broken bone and “too many bruises to count,” she added. William also had what appeared to be burn marks, the coroner said.

Despite all the injuries to the boy’s body, it was obvious that the 7-year-old died from blunt trauma to the head, Sammarco said.

The coroner’s office is still trying to determine the possible murder weapon.

Sammarco said she thinks William had been dead for about a day by the time his body was found.

Sammarco said the investigation is still going. Her office is awaiting toxicology results.

Once complete, the coroner’s report will be given to the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office and the Cincinnati Police Department.

Three people who William lived with are charged in the case: his mother, Kaitlin Evans, her partner, Kirby Rankin, and Nessa Keaney. Police said the three co-parented William.

All three are charged with murder and endangering children. They are all on suicide watch at the Hamilton County jail and are each being held on a $1.1 million bond.

They all pleaded not guilty and are expected to return to court later this month.

Abuse lasted for months

In court Friday, Kyle Smith, a veteran Cincinnati homicide detective, revealed William was severely beaten over the past two months.

Smith told the judge this case is “probably one of the most disturbing cases of child abuse” that he had ever seen during his decades on the force.

William was choked by being “water tortured,” and “burn tortured,” according to the detective.

“We believe the child was choked underwater, held underwater for a long period of time,” he said.

He also revealed in court that Rankin had disclosed her involvement in the “prolonged child abuse incident” and implicated Evans and Keaney as actively participating.

Rankin’s lawyer immediately sought a competency evaluation, contending she has “documented serious mental health issues.”

Mother arrived at hospital barefoot

A recording of a 911 call revealed what led police to find William’s body in the closet.

A woman who said she was the boy’s mother walked barefoot into the emergency room at Mercy Health Rookwood in Norwood and lay on the floor Thursday afternoon, according to a 911 call placed by a hospital supervisor.

The woman repeatedly claimed someone tried to kill her and kidnapped her son, identifying that person as her partner, Kirby Rankin.

The hospital supervisor told the dispatcher she didn’t know if the woman was in danger or having a psychiatric emergency.

Mother’s partner was recently convicted of violent attack: ‘Just vicious’

One of the suspects was free on bond at the time of William’s death, having just been convicted of a violent attack in a grocery store parking lot.

Kirby Rankin, 33, was convicted last month of misdemeanor assault and aggravated menacing outside Jungle Jim’s International Market on Jan. 4.

He pleaded guilty after police determined he pushed Amy Bunnell, 57, and punched her in the face, then threatened to shoot her while brandishing a firearm, according to the incident report.

Rankin did not point the gun at her, according to the report, but did point it at others who saw the attack and intervened to stop it.

“I never thought in a million years it would incite this kind of violence,” Bunnell recalled in an interview Saturday. “Literally within five seconds, he said he was going to shoot me. He was just violently angry, just vicious.”

Rankin was out on a $100,000 bond awaiting a Sept. 17 sentencing in Fairfield Municipal Court when Cincinnati police said they found William’s body in a closet.

William’s family releases statement

On Saturday, the family of William released their first statement since the boy’s death.

“The pain of losing such a sweet, beautiful, innocent child is beyond description. We will love and miss him forever,” the family said.

The family set up a GoFundMe for a celebration of life and memorial in William’s honor.

William’s grandmother said she also hopes to use the money to set up a foundation in William’s name.

“The foundation’s mission will be to support children facing circumstances similar to those William and his loved ones experienced, providing compassion, resources, and meaningful support during some of life’s most difficult moments,” the GoFundMe read.