The horrifying case of Jeremiah Oliver has been weighing on the minds of the Massachusetts community since he disappeared five years ago. After months of no progress, the arrest of 32-year-old Alberto Sierra Jr. promises a step in the right direction for the unsolved mystery. Sierra, the ex-boyfriend of Jeremiah’s mother, Elsa Oliver, has been found guilty of assault and battery in relation to the case.
In 2013, Jeremiah Oliver, only 5-years-old at the time, vanished without a trace. A report of abuse and neglect eventually led local agencies to investigate, but an investigation into the social worker of the state’s child welfare agency found that numerous home visits had been avoided.
After three years of searching, a breakthrough occurred when Jeremiah’s body was discovered beside a highway in 2014, in a suitcase. The autopsy’s findings were grisly and determined his death had been a result of “homicidal violence of undetermined” causes.
Sierra was later sentenced to up to seven years in prison for assaulting Jeremiah’s siblings and mother. In 2017, Oliver was also convicted and given more than seven years for charges related to her other two children and neglect regarding her son’s case. Charges related to Jeremiah’s disappearance were dropped against both of them in an effort to avoid potential claims of double jeopardy.
Alberto Sierra Jr., will be back in court May 25th, facing charges of disinterring a body as well as the murder of Jeremiah Oliver. Some justice for the 5-year-old may finally come into reach.