MISSING: 5-year-old Haleigh Cummings
'My daughter is gone'
Misty Croslin says she woke up about 3:00 a.m. In some reported versions of her story she got up to use the bathroom. In others, she got up to get something to drink. Either way, Croslin now says she didn't notice Haleigh was missing from her bed, which was parked right next to the bedroom door, until she went into the hallway and saw the kitchen light on and discovered the back door wide open.
At about 3:25 a.m., Ronald Cummings arrived home from work. When he pulled into the driveway his girlfriend was standing in the front doorway, Cummings says. He was instantly concerned, because it was unusual for Croslin to be up so late.
She told him Haleigh had vanished.
Two minutes later, Croslin called 911.
Croslin has not said, at least not in her many public interviews, what she did during those initial 25 minutes before Ronald Cummings got home. She has not explained why she waited nearly a half-hour to notify the Sheriff's Office that 5-year-old Haleigh was missing.
On the 911 recording, Croslin had trouble explaining the situation to the emergency operator. Several times she mentioned a brick by the back door. The operator asked for clarification. "Why does Croslin keep talking about a brick?" The operator asked for a physical description of Haleigh, including height and weight. Croslin had no answer other than, "She's not that tall."
In the background, Ronald Cummings can be heard speaking loudly. Finally, the 911 operator asked to speak to Ronald.
"I just got home from work," Cummings shouted. "My five-year-old daughter is gone. I need somebody to be here now. If I find whoever has my daughter before y'all do, I'm killing them. I don't care. I'll spend the rest of my life in prison."
After being home for only two minutes, Cummings was seemingly convinced someone had kidnapped Haleigh.
Someone at the Cummings's home then hung up on the 911 call. The operator called back to get more information. Cummings was again heard in the background and again mentioned killing whoever took his daughter. Then he told Croslin to hang up, and the phone went dead.