Parents in missing baby case plead not guilty

Calvin Melvin, Brittney Sierra charged in Dontrell Melvin's disappearance

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The parents of a missing toddler pleaded not guilty to charges related to his death.

Both Calvin Melvin Jr. and Brittney Sierra pleaded not guilty to cruelty toward a child. Melvin also pleaded not guilty to providing false information to a law enforcement officer.

Their son, Dontrell Melvin, was last seen in 2011 when he was six months old. Investigators believe he is dead.

A Broward Sheriff's Office deputy discovered the boy was missing while investigating an unrelated child neglect case on Jan. 9.

Police say Melvin and Sierra blamed each other for the child's disappearance, but both told detectives where to find the child. Remains believed to be Dontrell were found buried in the back yard of a home the couple rented in Hallandale Beach.

"Their conspiracy to hide the whereabouts of their child after the child went missing is apparent," said Hallandale Beach Police Chief Dwayne Flournoy.