NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – NYPD divers continue searching for Kavion Brown, a 13-year-old boy who jumped into the East River and has been missing since Friday.
His great-aunt, Alena Godfrey, 60, is on edge hoping for any news about her grandnephew.
"What really happened to this kid?" Godfrey told 1010 WINS. "You have kids out here, doing and saying things like 'I dare you' or these challenges and stuff. They need to get to the bottom of this."
The incident happened on Friday afternoon when Kavion, reported under peer pressure and a dare from his friends, jumped into the East River near E. Sixth St.
Since then, a search operation has been underway, involving NYPD's harbor unit, boats, divers, and an aviation unit chopper.
"I think he was pressured into this," Godfrey said. "I don't know the kids he was with that's another thing. I'm hoping he just ended up somewhere and he can't find his way out."
The search intensified on Sunday as divers took advantage of the low tide looking for any sign of Kavion.
"His bag is here," Laquana Badger, Kavion's mother told CBS New York. "His clothes, his phone.It's been a rollercoaster to say the least. I want him to be safe. I want to find him. He was always happy. He made me happy,"
For the past three days since Kavion's disappearance, his family has been near the river waiting.
"I would do whatever it takes, and I will stay here as long as it takes," Badger said.
