Maliyah Bass death: Houston mom and BF sentenced almost 4 years after dumping toddler's body in storm drain
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Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.
HOUSTON, TEXAS: Travion Thompson, 25, was sentenced to 40 years in prison in connection to the disturbing act of dumping his girlfriend's two-year-old daughter's lifeless body into a storm drain.
The Harris County District Attorney's Office announced on February 28 that Thompson pleaded guilty to three charges, including injury to a child causing serious bodily injury, for his role in the tragic death of Maliyah Bass.
A day after, Sahara Ervin, Bass' mother, received a 20-year sentence for tampering with evidence in connection to the case. She took a plea deal in 2022 and agreed to testify against her boyfriend, as per KHOU11.
Sahara Ervin said she was inside cooking when her daughter Maliyah Bass disappeared from a playground near their apartment
The horrifying incident unfolded on the morning of August 22, 2020, when Houston Police Department officers reached Beechnut Street following a call about a missing two-year-old.
Ervin initially reported to the police that she was inside cooking when Bass disappeared from a playground near their apartment. A subsequent search of the area proved unsuccessful, prompting the issuance of an Amber Alert.
Tragically, the next day, a jogger in southeast Houston discovered the little girl's lifeless body in a nearby bayou.
Suspects sentenced almost four years after Maliyah Bass' death
Ervin and Thompson were arrested in October 2020 and faced charges of injury to a child causing serious bodily injury and tampering with evidence.
As per charging documents, the mother subjected Bass to physical abuse, including inducing harm from a blunt object and leaving her naked "in a cold closet overnight."
Furthermore, the charges indicated a failure on Ervin's part to provide necessary medical care to her daughter. While the exact circumstances leading to Bass' death remain unclear, Thompson admitted to a shocking act – dumping the toddler's body into a storm drain, subsequently carried into a bayou.
The district attorney's office, while acknowledging the uncertainty surrounding the events, emphasized Thompson's admission to this gruesome act. He is set to be eligible for parole after serving 20 years of his 40-year sentence.
