The parents of Kavion Brown Godfrey, a 13-year-old boy, are beseeching the NYPD to expand their search efforts after their son went missing following his plunge into the East River near East 6th Street and the FDR Drive. Witnesses say Kavion was last seen battling the strong currents of the river shortly before 4:30 p.m. on a fateful Friday.
Laquana Badger-Godfrey, 32, Kavion's grief-stricken mother, shared with The Post the anguish she's been going through. "I don't have any idea why he would have gone into the water. My son was very intelligent and the happiest boy. I've been going through hell since he went missing."
Miscommunication and Assumptions
Laquana's recollections depict the horror of that afternoon. Kavion was believed to be attending a soccer game. Yet a call from her husband turned her world upside down, urging her to rush to the riverbanks. "I walked into a whole world of trouble. The coaches, FDNY, the police officers-it was chaos," she recalled.
Kavion's father, Donnell Godfrey, 34, was under the impression that his son was with a basketball coach from his school, Lower East Side Prep. He had received a call from someone named "Coach Joe," who asked if Kavion could attend a soccer game to support the school's team.
Donnell recounted, "He was supposed to support the soccer team because my son is a star player on the basketball team. The coach wanted all the kids from school to come support the soccer team."
The NYPD Chief of Detectives, Joseph Kenny, presented a different narrative, suggesting that Kavion might have dived into the river either to impress a girl or as part of a dare. This viewpoint doesn't resonate with the boy's mother, who firmly said, "My son, he didn't fool around in that way."
Ongoing Search Efforts
Speculations about the incident being recorded on video have added another layer of complexity to the ongoing investigation. Kenny mentioned, "We heard that it was possibly a dare from one child to another and that it was possibly videotaped. We're still tracking that down."
Despite the comprehensive search efforts by various NYPD units, Kavion remains missing. The weather conditions on the day complicated the rescue mission. However, investigators haven't ceased their operations.
"Harbor was there. Scuba was there. Aviation was there. They did their best for about three hours and forty minutes after the incident to try to find the child. He could not be located," Kenny said, emphasizing the continued efforts to locate Kavion.
In the midst of this heartbreaking ordeal, a beacon of hope emerges as a former teacher of Kavion's initiates a Go Fund Me campaign. The fundraiser aims to aid the family in continuing their search for Kavion independently.
Kavion's family remains hopeful. "He was a wonderful kid, and we all want him to be alright. We have to make sure he's alright, so we have to find him," a determined Donnell said, echoing the sentiments of countless well-wishers hoping for Kavion's safe return.
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