Prosecutors confirm evidence found in search for missing Everman boy

EVERMAN, Texas - Law enforcement officials appear to be closely focusing on a hole as they continue digging for answers in the 2022 disappearance of 6-year-old Noel Rodriguez Alvarez in Everman.

What's New:

At 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office confirmed that evidence was found today during search efforts.

"Clearly there was evidence found, but exactly what it is remains to be seen," read a statement from the office.

Everman Search

What's new:

A joint operation between the Everman Police Department, Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office, and the FBI is underway at the home where Noel once lived with his family in the 3700 block of Wisteria Drive.

Images from SKY 4 on Wednesday morning showed the law enforcement officials continuing to dig and sift through the dirt behind the house.

Then around 11:30 a.m., the search team began intensely focusing on a specific hole and even moved the location of their canopies to cover the hole. 

By the afternoon, there were more law enforcement officers, more specialized equipment, and more trucks and trailers at the scene.

What we don't know:

Despite all the activity, police have not yet confirmed whether they've found anything.

On Tuesday, Everman Police Chief Al Brooks said the search was just another part of the investigative process. He said there were no new leads or information that brought them back to the location, which had been searched before.

What they're saying:

A new family has been renting the house where the search is taking place. The woman who lives there now told FOX 4 that investigators gave her advanced notice so that she and her family could stay at a hotel.

The current renter of the house, Amber Duffins, said the investigators originally said they hoped to wrap up the digging around 4 p.m. on Wednesday, but she no longer thinks that's happening because more and more trucks have been arriving. 

Duffins said she had no idea the home was connected to Noel's case when her family moved in, and now investigators are literally digging up the area where her children play.

"Like, my daughter plays back there. My dog, you know, we were back there all the time," she said. "Part of me doesn't want a baby to be back there, and part of me does just so he can have the closure and everybody else who's been following this case since it first happened. But I just hope that the baby gets the closure."

Noel's family previously lived in the brown shed that's behind the home. Duffins said the shed is no longer occupied and is just a shed.

What's next:

The Everman police chief did not speak with reporters today, but off-camera he shared that the search appears to have wrapped up, and more details will likely come tomorrow.

Duffins was told that Wednesday would be the last day of the search operation.

Everman Missing Boy

The backstory:

Noel’s mother, Cindy Rodriguez Singh, is charged with capital murder for his disappearance.

The 6-year-old was last seen alive in the fall of 2022. However, police in his hometown of Everman weren’t made aware of his disappearance until March of 2023.

That’s when an extended relative reported him missing and police and Child Protective Services were called to the then 6-year-old’s home.

Police said Noel's mother lied to investigators and told them he was living with his biological father in Mexico.

Two days later, Rodriguez Singh, her husband, and Noel's six siblings left the country on a flight to India. Noel was not on that flight.

Singh was added to the FBI’s Most Wanted list and was captured in India last August.

Last month, a Tarrant County judge determined that she was incompetent to stand trial, and she was sent to a state mental facility.

Her surviving children are now living with family in the United States. A hearing for the parental rights of those children was postponed until she can attend.

Noel is presumed dead, but his remains were never found.

Noel Rodriguez-AlvarezEvermanCrime and Public Safety