Case Details

Photo URLs:

This person was missing Missing Since 01/18/2001

Missing Since:

Missing Since 01/18/2001

Missing From:

Missing From Miami, Florida

Classification:

Classification Endangered Missing

Gender:

Female

Race:

Race Black

Date of Birth:

Date of Birth 09/29/1996 (28)

Age:

Age 4 years old

Height and Weight:

Height and Weight 3’0, 40 – 50 pounds

Clothing/Jewelry Description:

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Distinguishing Characteristics African-American female. Black hair, brown eyes. Rilya has a scar from a puncture wound approximately five inches below her navel. Her ears are pierced. Some agencies give her middle name as “Denise.”

Details of Disappearance:

Rilya Wilson disappeared in 2001 at the age of 4. Her mother, Gloria, had a drug problem and couldn’t care for her children, so Rilya and her siblings were placed with Geralyn Graham, who claimed to be their grandmother or godmother. The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) was supposed to check on them, but their social worker, Deborah Muskelly, falsified records.

Graham told authorities that a woman claiming to be from the DCF took Rilya for an evaluation in January 2001. Rilya was never seen again. This wasn’t reported until April 2002. Muskelly and her supervisor lost their jobs over the falsified records, but weren’t charged in Rilya’s disappearance. Graham continued to receive money from the state for Rilya’s care even after she was gone.

The investigation revealed a complex web of lies and deceit:

* **Graham’s questionable past:** Graham had a long history of using different names, legal troubles (including fraud), and mental health issues.
* **Conflicting accounts of Rilya’s father:** Several men claimed to be Rilya’s father, but none proved it.
* **Pamela Kendrick’s role:** Pamela Kendrick, often mistaken for Graham’s sister (but not related), also cared for Rilya and was later charged with neglecting her. Kendrick claimed Graham lied about the DCF worker taking Rilya.
* **Rilya’s siblings:** Rilya’s siblings were removed from Graham’s care, and one sister had been secretly living with a couple for years after her mother abandoned her. The other sister was neglected by Graham and the DCF.

Years later, Graham was charged with kidnapping and child abuse. A former cellmate, Robin Lunceford, claimed Graham confessed to murdering Rilya. While Lunceford’s testimony was initially unreliable, she eventually agreed to testify after her sentence was reduced.

Graham was convicted of kidnapping and child abuse and sentenced to 55 years in prison. A mistrial was declared on the murder charge, but the prosecution plans to retry her. Rilya’s body has never been found, but everything points to foul play being involved in her disappearance.

Agency:

Miami-Dade Police Department 305-418-7302

Source Links: