Landfill search for missing girl starts Monday morning

PHOENIX, AZ - The search for missing 5-year-old Jhessye Shockley of Glendale starts a new chapter Monday morning.

At 7 a.m., crews will begin painstakingly searching a local landfill for her remains.

Imagine searching 6,000 tons of trash inch by inch in an area 180 x 200 x 20 feet. 

That is the targeted area where Glendale police think they have the best chance of finding Jhessye’s remains.

Officials say much of the searching will be done on hands and knees and they're not looking for a body, but likely body parts in decay or other kinds of evidence, like clothing.

This all starts Monday morning at the Butterfield Landfill in Mobile, which is south of the Valley.  

More than 40 people, including officers, detectives, and the FBI, will be at the site each day searching for any sign of the missing 5-year-old from Glendale. 

Police say they believe Jhessye’s body was put in a trash bin in Tempe before she was reported missing on Oct. 11, 2011. 

Jhessye's mother, Jerice Hunter, is the only person of interest in this case, but her attorney wonders why it took law enforcement so long to search the landfill if they really think she's there.

“Certainly, a lot of emotions for the community, but let's look at what the facts are and the evidence. At this point, we haven't seen any,” said Scott Maasen, Hunter’s Attorney.

Officers will be searching the landfill until the operation is complete. 

Stay with ABC15 and ABC15.com for the latest on this investigation.