Georgia – In a grim discovery in Georgia, a 36‑year‑old woman, identified as J. Motes, has been arrested after authorities found the remains of a 4‑year‑old girl, identified as A. Fox, hidden in the trunk of a car. The arrest stems from a disturbing statement the woman made to her father—claiming she had “hurt” the child and thought she was dead. Motes has been charged with one count of concealing the death of a child, a felony under Georgia law.
Motes currently faces the single charge of concealing the death of a child, and she is being held without bond in the county jail. The nature of her relationship to the 4‑year‑old, whether caregiver, relative, or other, is still not publicly confirmed. Motes was taken into custody on Sunday, October 26, after a series of events triggered law‑enforcement involvement. On that Sunday evening, around 5:00 p.m., dispatchers received notice of a woman and child situation in the parking lot of a retail plaza. The warrant states Motes had pulled into the lot and, during a conversation with her father, made the disturbing admission that the young girl was hurt and likely dead. Her father then drove off and contacted law enforcement. Officers later intercepted their vehicle and inspected it. Inside the car trunk, investigators found the child’s remains.
At the scene, Oakwood PD, Hall County deputies, and the GBI collaborated to secure the vehicle, process evidence, and initiate a death investigation. The discovery of remains inside a trunk in a commercial parking lot raised immediate concerns over how long the body had been in the vehicle and what led up to the child’s death. Officials say the remains appeared to have been concealed for “a long period of time.” The cause of her death has not yet been made public, and criminal investigators continue to probe whether Motes harmed the child directly or how the death occurred.
Motes was booked into the county jail on the charge of concealing the death of another person—a charge that addresses the act of hiding or improperly disposing of a body, rather than directly citing homicide. Prosecutors have not yet announced additional charges, but given the severity of the findings, more counts — such as felony murder or cruelty to children — may be forthcoming. Until a full medical‑examiner’s report is completed and investigators interview all involved parties, key questions remain unanswered. Specifically, the nature of Motes’ relationship to Fox, how the body came to be in her car trunk, and why she alerted her father rather than law‑enforcement earlier. Officials have urged anyone with information to contact the GBI.
Neighbors expressed their horror at the discovery and sympathy for the victim’s family. One local report noted the surreal nature of the scene: a mother (or potential caregiver) driving into a retail lot, admitting a child was possibly dead, and then law‑enforcement finding the child’s remains hidden in a car trunk — in plain daylight. For Fox’s family, the grief is compounded by the unknown: the relationship to Motes, how long the remains were hidden, and the reasons behind the disclosure to the father rather than emergency services. The community will be watching closely as prosecutors decide whether to escalate the charges and as forensic experts seek to determine exactly what happened to this 4‑year‑old girl.
