Police charge father with murder in death of Amber Alert subject Maddox Lawrence

The Syracuse Police Department has arrested and charged Ryan Lawrence, 24, with second-degree murder in the death of his 21-month-old daughter, Maddox Lawrence, the subject of a recent Amber Alert, police said.

The New York State Police recovered the body believed to be Maddox from the Onondaga Creekwalk at the intersection of Bear Street and Van Rensselaer Street in Syracuse on Tuesday, SPD Chief Frank Fowler said at a press conference Tuesday. Police couldn’t say for certain that the body is Maddox because further DNA testing must be conducted, Fowler said.

But Fowler added that based on the recovery of the body, interviews with witnesses and other information, police were confident enough to charge Ryan with second-degree murder.

An Amber Alert was called Sunday morning after Ryan and Maddox were reported missing Saturday night by Morgan Lawrence, the mother of Maddox and wife of Ryan. Ryan had left behind a message that caused Morgan to become concerned, Fowler said, but Fowler declined to elaborate on the content of the message.

On Monday around 1:30 p.m., police received a 911 call from a caller who saw a person walking on Downer Street in Baldwinsville matching the description of Ryan, Fowler said. Shortly after Ryan was stopped by the Village of Baldwinsville Police Department, SPD arrived and identified the person to be Lawrence, despite him wearing a disguise, Fowler said.

Fowler declined to elaborate on what the disguise was.

Lawrence was then transferred to SPD, where an investigation was conducted by detectives in the Criminal Investigations Division, Fowler said. That investigation led police to the Onondaga Creekwalk, where the body believed to be Maddox was discovered the following day.

The investigation is ongoing, Fowler said, adding that the state police and the FBI have aided SPD in the investigation. Law enforcement officials from all three agencies joined Fowler at Tuesday’s news conference.

“This is a tough investigation for all involved,” Fowler said. “When you’re talking about a child, you’re talking about a special situation. … We’re supposed to protect our children.”

Ryan Lawrence is currently being held in the Onondaga County Justice Center and is likely to be arraigned Wednesday morning, Fowler said.