HAMPTON, Va. — Nearly a year and a half after Cory Bigsby reported his son, Codi, missing in Hampton, investigators still have not found the 4-year-old boy.
The child's disappearance is still a mystery as Bigsby remains silent on what could have happened to his son.
Despite investigators not finding Codi's body yet, prosecutors said they found enough evidence to charge Bigsby with murder and concealment of a body in the boy's disappearance. Based on the evidence, investigators said they believe Codi died several months before Bigsby reported him missing.
The 44-year-old is currently out on bond as he awaits his trial potentially taking place this Fall.
This is what prosecutors are calling a "no body trial."
"They're not very common, but there are 10 known such cases in the state of Virginia," said Harvey Bryant, former Virginia Beach Commonwealth's Attorney.
Bryant, who previously served as a U.S. Attorney, said because there's no physical body to prove Bigsby is somehow involved in Codi's disappearance, prosecutors will have to rely on circumstantial evidence.
"Well, people ask, circumstantial evidence, what is that? It can be just as powerful as direct evidence," Bryant said. "We base our lives on our actions on circumstantial evidence. We get up in the morning and the streets are wet and our cars are wet. Even though we didn't see it rain, circumstantially, we know it rained."
Here's where it could get more complicated. Depending on the evidence, Bryant said the judge and jury would have to determine what degree of murder Bigsby could face.
"It could be that an accident happened and they have evidence that Cory Bigsby covered it up. That would be involuntary manslaughter. It could have also happened in a fit of rage, which would lead to a more serious murder charge," Bryant explained as he explored all possibilities of what could have happened.
He went on to say, "That's going to be a challenge for the prosecution and for the jury in determining what level of homicide it was. I believe the judge will let the jury have all of those options depending on what the evidence is."
Bigsby's case is similar to a trial that occurred in Virginia Beach in 2022. In the case of the disappearance of Bellamy Gamboa, her boyfriend and father of children, Lamont Johnson, was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
While investigators technically never found Gamboa's body, they still prosecuted Johnson after he admitted to strangling her and disposing of her body before he tried rescinding that statement. Prosecutors in that case also used circumstantial evidence to support their arguments.
Bigsby's attorney, Amina Matheny-Willard, said she wants to find Codi before the trial begins. Bigsby's uncle, Glenn Hinnant, told reporters after the bond hearing that he believes Codi is still alive until investigators provide a body as proof.
Meanwhile, Bigsby is scheduled for a competency evaluation on August 25.