The remains of a child were found in a bag on Friday (May 31) near the scene of the search for Maleah Davis.

According to law enforcement officials, the remains were discovered by authorities in Hope, Arkansas and while they have not been identified, they’re not ruling out that they’re of Maleah Davis, who has been officially missing since May 4.

On Friday afternoon, an interstate cleanup crew reportedly found the remains in a garbage bag near Exit 18 in Fulton, Arkansas. Authorities say they’re working to determine if there’s a connection to Derion Vence, the four-year-old’s stepfather and primary suspect in her disappearance.

Vence has been in jail since May 11 after he was charged with tampering with evidence in connection with Maleah’s disappearance.

Community activist Quanell X, who recently stepped away from representing Maleah’s mother Brittany Bowens, claims Vence told him Friday morning that Maleah is dead and that her death was the result of an accident. He also said Vence confessed to dumping her body in Arkansas.

"One thing he wanted to make clear to me was, what happened to Maleah was an accident. He says it was an accident and he confessed to me where he dumped her body," Quanell X said to reporters. "He said that he pulled over in Arkansas, got out of the car, walked off the side of the road and dumped her body off the side of the road."

Vence reported Maleah Davis missing on May 4 when he went to a Sugar Land hospital for treatment of injuries he suffered during an alleged attack, which he claims resulted him being knocked out and Maleah being kidnapped.