Left: Vernon Hatchett (Montgomery County District Attorney). Right: Tylim Hatchett (MCDA).
Authorities in Pennsylvania have increased the reward for any information leading to the capture of a 40-year-old father accused of letting his 21-year-old special-needs son waste away and starve to death in the family's home.
District Attorney Kevin R. Steele and Upper Dublin Police Chief Francis Wheatley on Wednesday officially declared a $10,000 reward for assistance that directly leads to Vernon Hatchett being apprehended in connection with the death of Tylim Hatchett, who weighed only 59 pounds when he died.
Authorities say Hatchett also goes by the name Khaliyl Ward.
Hatchett, who has been on the lam for more than a year, is facing a slew of felonies stemming from his son's death, including counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, abuse of a dependent, and conspiracy to commit involuntary manslaughter.
"Vernon Hatchett is charged with neglecting the care of his son to such an extent that it caused his death," the district attorney said in the release. "Tylim was totally dependent on the adults in his life, including his father, Vernon Hatchett."
Tylim's mother, Sherrilynn Hawkins, last year pleaded guilty to one count each of third-degree murder, neglect of a dependent care person, theft by deception, and conspiracy to commit theft by deception. A judge ordered her to serve 25 to 50 years in a state correctional facility.
The reward for Hatchett's arrest began at $5,000 and was upped to $7,500 before reaching $10,000.
Prosecutors said Tylim Hatchett died from prolonged neglect at the hands of his parents, as well as another woman, Loretta Harris. Harris was a friend of Hawkins. Both women accepted funds from a home health care agency to work as the 21-year-old's caregivers, but would leave him alone for hours on end, sometimes for as long as 24 hours.
Harris was sentenced to five years of probation after pleading to charges of endangering the welfare of a care-dependent person, theft by deception and conspiracy to commit theft.
As Law&Crime previously reported, police at about 7:50 p.m. on Sept. 18, 2024, responded to an apartment complex in Dresher, Pennsylvania, regarding a report of an unresponsive person. Upon arriving at the address, first responders said they found Tylim Hatchett "severely emaciated and lying on the floor."
He was pronounced dead at the scene. Vernon Hatchett was at the apartment and allegedly told officers that he'd found his son about two hours before he got around to calling 911.
A subsequent autopsy performed by a forensic pathologist at the Montgomery County Coroner's Office determined that the cause of death was complications due to cerebral palsy in the setting of neglect. The manner of death was determined to be a homicide.
According to a previous press release, police, with the assistance of the Montgomery County Detective Bureau, conducted an investigation and found that in February 2024, Tylim Hatchett weighed 91 pounds, meaning he had lost 31 pounds — more than one-third of his total body weight — over the course of just seven months.
Investigators also found evidence showing that Hawkins and Harris were both submitting hours and receiving money from Aveanna Healthcare to be compensated for their time, even though the women were not actually caring for the victim.
"A review of cell phone records found that Hawkins and Harris would 'clock in' as a caretaker for Tylim Hatchett at times they were not actively with him, leaving him alone for upwards of 24 hours at a time," the release states. "Between Sept. 1, 2024, and Sept. 18, 2024, Tylim Hatchett was left in the apartment by himself for 356 of the 425 hours, translating to 82% of the time within those 18 days."
According to authorities, Tylim Hatchett's medical records also listed several medications he was supposed to take every day. Those medications needed to be prepared and provided by a caregiver as the victim was "unable to self-medicate." However, investigators said that Harris had not given Tylim Hatchett any medications at all when she visited.
The victim's parents also appeared to be well aware of the danger their son was in.
"Throughout September, Hawkins messaged Vernon Hatchett multiple times about their son's deteriorating health yet continued to leave him alone without providing him food or medicine," the release states.
Anyone with information about Hatchett's whereabouts is urged to contact Montgomery County Detective James Lavin at 484-674-6527 or Upper Dublin Detective Brian Devlin at 215-646-2101. Authorities emphasized that anyone who spots Hatchett should not approach him, just simply call 911.
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