SOUTHLAND : Missing Inglewood Boy, 11, Found Dead Dumped in Carport

The body of an 11-year-old Inglewood boy who was reported missing after he failed to return home from school Thursday was found dumped in the carport of a Hawthorne apartment building, police said today.

The body of William James Tillett of Inglewood was discovered by residents of the apartment building about 10:15 p.m. Thursday, five hours after he was reported missing by his mother, Inglewood Police Sgt. Harold Moret said.

“The body had no obvious signs of trauma. But we are treating it as a homicide for several reasons,” Moret said. Those reasons include the “suspicious” location of the body and indications that the youngster’s wrists had been bound. Police said, however, there were no immediate clues as to how the boy died.

Moret said the boy was last seen by two friends around 3 p.m. as he walked home from Kew Elementary School, where he was a student in the fourth grade.

Police said the boy had no pulse when paramedics arrived at the apartment building. He was transported to Robert Kennedy Hospital and pronounced dead on arrival.