Taylen Mosley missing: Amber alert issued for 2 year old after mother is found dead 

On Thursday, March 31, St. Petersburg authorities issued an amber alert for 2-year-old Taylen Mosley after his mother was found murdered in their apartment. According to NBC, 2-year-old Mosley and his mother, Pashun Jeffery, were last seen alive by their family on Wednesday. When they couldn't reach Pashun on Thursday morning, they contacted her apartment manager, who found her dead.

Trigger warning: This article concerns a murder investigation. Readers' discretion is advised.

According to investigators, police confirmed that Taylen Mosley is not with his father. The child was last seen in the area of the 11600 Block of fourth street North in St. Petersburg.

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Authorities comment on the search for Taylen Mosley

In an official statement, Police Chief Anthony Holloway said that the authorities had no leads in the search for Taylen Mosley. They said that they plan to launch a drone in order to conduct a grid search. Detectives are also going door-to-door to see if neighbors know anything about the case.

Holloway said:

“We don’t have anything right now. And that’s why we’re asking if anybody knows where Taylen is to please let us know.”

He added:

“It’s all hands on deck right now. We’ll call our detectives in, we have our county, state and federal partners that are assisting because we want to find Taylen. That’s our main goal right now.”

While the cause of Pashun Jefferey's death remains unknown, a neighbor reported that there was a "commotion" in her apartment at approximately 9:30 on Wednesday. No one called the police at the time.

While Holloway did not reveal the details of Jefferey's death, he said that the murder scene was brutal.

He said:

"That crime scene is very violent on the inside [of the apartment]."

Taylen Mosley was described as a 2 foot tall African American male. He weighs approximately 30 pounds.

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Homicide rates in St. Petersburg, Florida

While the death of Pashun Jeffery and the disappearance of her son has left the community shocked. The city of St. Petersburg, which has a population of approximately 258,201 people, has a relatively low homicide rate.

Bay News 9 reported that 2023 seemed promising for people in the city, as the homicides had dropped drastically since Covid. In 2021, the city saw 33 murders. In 2022, the number nearly halved, becoming 16. The city's police department said that this can be owed to the improved response times to crime scenes.

According to the St. Petersburg Catalyst, however, other kinds of crimes are not uncommon in the city. While the rate of violent crime has dropped, property crime remains at a high. Chief Holloway noted that car theft is a prominent issue which authorities are trying to curb.