Body Found in Duffel Bag in Hotel Likely That of Missing Child, Samuel Olson. Possible Suspect ID'd.

A missing little boy has possibly been found dead last night and police believe they have a person of interest.

Samuel Olson, 6, was reported missing just a few days ago and a tip called in to Jasper, Texas police may have led them to his body. Reports say that around 6pm last night the police showed up at a Best Western hotel in Jasper, just two hours from Houston, where they found the body of a young boy, stuffed in a duffle bag, that had been there for some time.

In a press conference Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said: 'It is with great sadness that I share with you that a body - of who we believe to be 6-year-old Samuel Olson - was recovered in a motel room in Jasper, Texas, earlier this evening.'

Finner also stated that they have a possible suspect and identified her as Teresa Balboa, the girlfriend of Samuel's dad - who was being questioned, and that surveillance footage had been obtained showing who went in and out of the hotel room.

Balboa reported Samuel missing on May 27 in the 8800 block of McAvoy Drive in Houston, having claimed the boy was taken by his biological mother, Sarah Olson, and a person dressed as a police officer.

'I was going to take Sam to school when his mother showed up with the police officer, or who I was under the impression to be a police officer, and they demanded me to release Sam,' Balboa told ABC13 on Monday.

Dalton Olson and Samuel's biological mother, Sarah Olson, share custody of the child.

Balboa said because she does not have any legal rights to Samuel, she was forced to hand him over to his birth mother and the person dressed in a full police uniform, complete with a gun, handcuffs and a Harris County badge.

Samuel's mother, Sarah Olson, said through her attorney that she hadn't seen her son in over a year, since January 2020, because his father and Balboa were denying her access to him.

According to The Daily Mail, the former spouses initially would hand over Samuel to one another through the boy's paternal grandmother, Tonya Olson.

But after one of the handovers a year ago, Dalton Olson allegedly failed to return Samuel to his ex-wife. The attorney did not say what, if any, legal steps Sarah Olson had taken to try and reclaim custody of her son over the past 16 months.

Dalton Olson on Tuesday defended his conduct pertaining to Samuel prior to the discovery of the body.

'I've literally tried to do everything from the very beginning to do what's best for my son,' the father said. 'That is my whole world and I can't imagine if anything happened to him and I believe he's still out there.'

It has since emerged that Samuel may have been seen at an apartment on Gulf Breeze in southeast Houston that belongs to a friend of Balboa's. Texas authorities issued a search warrant for that property and a Black Dodge was towed away from the property.

Balboa has a prior history of violence. Court documents say that in November of 2020 she assaulted Dalton Olson by "impeding" his breathing. He was granted a restraining order but later reconciled with Balboa.

Dalton Olson says that Balboa was good with his son and even helped to watch him while he was at work. Honestly people, it just goes to show that it's not just mothers who need to watch who they leave their children with, fathers have to be careful too!

Officials admit that there are too many holes in this story at the moment but they are committed to solving the case.