SAN ANTONIO -- San Antonio Police Chief William McManus says officers have begun excavating a landfill for evidence in the disappearance of an 8-month-old boy.
McManus said Tuesday that authorities "remain hopeful that Baby Gabriel is alive."
Gabriel Johnson was last seen with his 23-year-old mother, Elizabeth Johnson, in San Antonio on Dec. 26. The Arizona woman was arrested Dec. 30 in Florida and charged with kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference.
Police turned to the landfill after the mother allegedly sent a text message to the father, saying their baby was dead. She later retracted the comment.
McManus told a news conference that police are excavating a section of the landfill believed to contain trash from a motel where Johnson was last seen with her baby.
McManus on Saturday announced the case was being treated as a homicide.
