On December 23, 2025, 11-month-old Basil Daly was found inside a recreational vehicle in the Mimbres area near Silver City, New Mexico, having suffered a fatal gunshot wound. The child had been the subject of a month-long search that began in Wyoming after his father reported him missing following a custody ruling that awarded temporary emergency custody to the father.

Authorities traced Basil and his non-custodial mother, 35-year-old Madeline Daly of Worland, Wyoming, to the RV after a background check tied to a potential job application in Silver City alerted deputies to her presence. Deputies say Madeline barricaded inside the vehicle; a gunshot was heard and, after entry, first responders found Basil deceased. Officers report Madeline was found with a firearm, was subdued by a detective before she could harm herself, and subsequently made statements admitting she acted to prevent the father from getting custody.

Madeline Daly was arrested and booked in Grant County and faces an open count of first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death. The matter has been referred to federal authorities. Did anyone in the Silver City or Worland areas have contact with Basil or Madeline in the weeks before December 23?