A Change.org petition drive has gained hundreds of signatures demanding Dalton Olson be charged with girlfriend Theresa Balboa in connection with disappearance and death of Samuel Olson.
Hundreds have signed an online initiative demanding that Dalton Olson be criminally charged alongside his girlfriend, Theresa Balboa, in the disappearance and apparent death of his young son Samuel.
"Samuel Olson was fought over and landed in the hands of his father who ultimately kidnapped him from his mother who tried endlessly to get her son back with no help from the system," reads the preamble to a Change.org petition that has garnered more than 430 signatures. "His father Dalton Olson, Theresa Balboa, and (Balboa's roommate) are at fault and should all face the same fate with the judicial system!"
Dalton Olson maintained through his attorney that he had nothing to do with happened to his son. The father told investigators Samuel had been in Balboa's care since April 30, the last day the boy had attended school, police said.
Samuel was reported missing on May 27, two days before his sixth birthday.
Balboa, the only person charged thus far in the case of Samuel Olson, appeared in a Texas court Monday, where her bail was increased to $600,000. A prosecutor said additional charges could be filed after the little Samuel Olson's autopsy report is completed.
She was been charged with evidence tampering involving a human corpse, according to court records.
The father has been bombarded with angry social media messages blaming him for his missing son.
"Fess up," one comment read.
"I pray you get justice for what you did!" another posted.
The petition effort likewise drew incensed comments.
"This poor baby deserves justice, the people that he believed loved him took advantage of his trust and took his life. Shame on you all. I hope there is a special place in HELL for people like you," wrote one poster. "Please do not let these monsters walk free," said another.
Balboa was arrested last week in Jasper County, Texas, where authorities found her and a plastic case containing the decomposing remains of the little boy, police said. She was transferred from the Jasper County Jail to the Houston County Jail on Friday. Her bail had initially been set at $500,000. She was considered a flight risk because she had been allegedly preparing to take the child's body to Louisiana, prosecutors said.
"They found the tote described by a witness," according to her criminal complaint. "Smelled distinct odor of decomposition. Found complainants body wrapped in black plastic and duct tape."
The boy's father called police May 27 to report Samuel's disappearance. Balboa falsely told officers the boy's mother arrived that morning with a uniformed officer and took the child, authorities said. But her story began to fall apart as investigators spoke to the boy's mother, who provided home surveillance video showing she had never left her house, according to court documents.
An arrest warrant affidavit said Balboa's roommate told investigators he arrived home May 10 to find Samuel bruised and unresponsive on the bed. He and Balboa put the boy's body in their bathtub and left him there for two days, the document said. He then helped her move the child's remains to a storage locker after placing them in a black plastic bag and stashing them a bin, the affidavit says.
Another friend helped Balboa retrieve the bin on June 1, which was emitting a foul odor, and drove the woman to a Best Western motel in Jasper, some 130 miles away, according to court documents. After helping Balboa move the bin into the room, the friend went home, and later called Crime Stoppers to report Balboa's location, authorities said.
Houston police have released few details in the case, saying they were questioning people in connection to Sam's disappearance, including his father. Dalton Olson has not been charged in the case and Houston Police said he is not a person of interest, but more charges could be filed. "He had nothing to do with the death of his son," attorney Samuel Veenstra said, according to KPRC. "[The] family is in mourning, shocked and in disbelief."
Balboa had been out on bond pending trial for an assault charge involving Dalton Olson, who reported in November that Balboa had choked him, Morris said. According to online court records, Balboa was freed on $15,000 bail and her arraignment is scheduled for June 24.
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