Dominique Bailey: Mother arrested on murder charges alongside boyfriend after falsely claiming son Damari Carter, 4, was hit by car

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.

PENNSYLVANIA, PHILADELPHIA: A 4-year-old boy is reported missing who was last seen on November 25, 2023, and his remains are unlocated.

The 28-year-old mother and her boyfriend are facing murder charges in connection with the death of missing Damari Carter. 

Dominique Bailey and Kevin Spencer are also accused of allegedly fabricating a story for relatives, claiming that the child was fatally struck by a car. 

Notably, Bailey and Spencer are currently under investigation for their involvement in the case. Additional details emerged as the investigation extended to include discussions with Carter's relatives and his father as per Law&Crime.

Charges against Dominique Bailey and Kevin Spencer

Dominique Bailey and her boyfriend Kevin Spencer are charged with offenses such as murder, endangering the welfare of a child, false reporting, and abuse of a corpse in the death of Carter.

Authorities in Philadelphia have not publicly indicated a cause of death, and Damari's body has not yet been located. However, sources speaking to the local ABC affiliate WPVI suggest that investigators believe the child may have been fatally beaten.

What did Damari Carter’s relatives say?

When Damari Carter's relatives reached out to WPVI seeking assistance in publicizing the child's disappearance, Aiyana Parrish, Carter's cousin, asserted,  "I just knew, He’s blood, so I gotta do whatever it takes to make sure my family is OK.”

In a statement, the Philadelphia Police mentioned, “The Special Victims Unit (SVU) initiated an investigation on December 30, 2023, following information received from a media outlet regarding a missing child in the West Philadelphia area, despite no prior reports of the missing child, SVU investigators commenced a thorough inquiry.”

Relatives shared that they became aware of Dominique Bailey's claim that a car had fatally struck the boy. However, the assigned investigator found no evidence supporting this alleged crash, according to police. 

Authorities stated that Bailey was brought in for questioning on Thursday, and Spencer was later arrested during the execution of a search warrant at an address in the 3800 block of Reno St.

Without providing details, the police mentioned that Bailey provided information about her involvement in her son's death.

Damari Carter’s father says ‘he didn’t deserve that’

Darryle Carter Jr, the father of the missing boy Damari Carter, shared with the Philadelphia local newspaper Metro in a report on Sunday that he learned of the purported crash between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

Upon contacting the local medical examiner’s offices, he discovered no record of Damari. 

Carter Jr revealed that he had lived with Dominique Bailey in Killeen, Texas, before their divorce. 

According to him, she took their son to Philadelphia after a meeting in April 2023 at a park, prompting him to file a missing-person report. 

Expressing his grief, Carter Jr stated, “I got nothing but good memories of my son, and it’s sad that he had to go through that, he didn’t deserve that. He was an angel. He was like a mini version of me.”