Sophia Van Dam, 20, disappeared in late June 2023 after leaving a Beaufort home where she had been staying with her two-year-old son, Matteo. Sophia had moved to Beaufort to stay with her mother, Theresa Van Dam, hoping to leave a turbulent relationship in Sumter with her boyfriend, Jonas Jerry Washington Jr. Theresa last saw Sophia and Matteo the morning of June 22, 2023; later that day both were gone.

On June 24 Sophia sent her mother a series of nonsensical texts saying she was moving back to Sumter; Theresa feared a mental health crisis and urged medical help, which Sophia declined. Sophia’s car was later found at the Sumter residence she had shared with Washington, with Matteo’s car seat still inside. Multiple agencies investigated, and officers removed bags of potential evidence from the Sumter home. Investigators recovered a large amount of Sophia’s blood at the rental, leading them to conclude she likely did not survive.

An arrest was made in Georgia in June 2025 charging Jonas Jerry Washington Jr. with Sophia’s murder and Matteo’s kidnapping; neither Sophia nor Matteo’s bodies have been located. Does anyone have information about Sophia or Matteo’s movements in Beaufort or Sumter in June 2023?