WARNING: This article includes references to possible child abuse and graphic situations that some viewers may find disturbing.
HAMPTON, Va. — Friday marked the fifth day of the murder trial against Cory Bigsby: the Hampton man accused of killing his son Codi.
Corrections officers from Hampton Roads Regional Jail - where Bigsby was in custody - testified about what Cory allegedly confessed while in jail.
The officer, Jemal Massey, claimed that Bigsby yelled, asking for an officer to write stuff down for him. He claims this happened while he was on duty in the early morning of Aug. 4, 2022.
Hampton
Documents: Confession of Cory Bigsby in death of son Codi Bigsby
Massey claims Bigsby asked him to write down the following: "I found my son unresponsive, tried CPR... [I] could not revive him," said Massey while quoting what Bigsby allegedly said. "I put him in a trash bag, put him in the car, where he sat for three to five days... I buried him."
After the corrections officer wrote down Bigsby's words, Bigsby asked to sign it and did so, Massey claims.
Codi's body has not been found despite Bigsby allegedly writing down an address in Maryland.
The officer wiped away tears while reading the letter to the court.
“He [Bigsby] was very adamant about what he was saying," said the officer about the alleged confession. "He did not hesitate.”
Another corrections officer stated that later that same day, Aug. 4, 2022, she offered pen and paper to Bigsby and that he wrote another letter. Lt. Kate Evans stated it talked about how Codi was “…laying at the bottom of the steps. He must have fallen.”
Evans added that the letter mentioned having headphones on Codi and that Bigsby placed his bike near him when he buried his body.
Former corrections officer, Ivana Cotto, then took the stand. She testified that Bigsby “placed a paper on the tray slot” on Christmas Day 2022.
Cotto read the letter which painted a different picture. It said, in part, that Bigsby “beat him with my fist and he went into cardiac arrest… I tried to perform CPR.”
At that point, you could hear crying in the courtroom.
According to Cotto, Bigsby then said he put Codi in the bathtub and prayed to God to bring his baby back.
She said the letter ended with, “Please accept my confessions.”
Before the corrections officers testified, Darren Spencer - an FBI analyst who specializes in digital data analysis - also took the stand. He claims he looked at Cory Bigsby's tablets and phones.
When asked if he saw any pictures of Codi after June and July 2021 on the phone, Spencer responded, "There were no original pictures of Codi."
Court adjourned at about 4 p.m. on Friday as the prosecution wrapped up witness testimony. The Commonwealth has put 14 witnesses on the stand this week. Judge James Hawks has scheduled the trial to resume on Monday at 9 a.m.
What's happened thus far in the trial?
The murder trial against Cory Bigsby began Monday, March 4.
During the prosecution's opening remarks, attorney Dylan Arnold accused Bigsby of killing Codi months before he reported him missing.
Defense attorney Kenneth Singleton claimed Bigsby frantically called 911 after he couldn’t find his son. He told jurors they’d hear “no evidence of a murder.”
Codi's brother testifies
The courtroom was emotional when Codi's older brother provided testimony. He testified in a separate room outside of the courtroom on Thursday.
The brother claimed Cory Bigsby would often punish Codi and said “he would spank him.”
Disappearance of Codi Bigsby
Codi Bigsby's brother testifies in their father's murder trial
He also claimed there was an instance in which he couldn’t wake up his brother Codi. “His face was red, it was dry, and it was bruised,” the brother said.
The brother recalled the exchange he had with his father following the alleged incident:
“I asked him what was wrong with Codi. He said nothing was wrong with him,” the brother said.
When the prosecution asked the boy if he believed his dad, he said: “No…because he [Codi] looked dead.”
In the courtroom, Cory Bigsby was visibly shaking. Members of the public who were in the courtroom were upset during the child’s testimony and began crying.
During his testimony, the child did struggle with description of time.
Codi's mother testifies
Another noteworthy testimony was provided on Wednesday by Codi’s mother, Dina Kareem.
On the stand, Kareem claimed that she and Cory Bigsby, who share four kids, have not been in a relationship since 2019. After she was hospitalized in 2020, she left their children in the care of Bigsby, she claimed.
Disappearance of Codi Bigsby
'He looks frightened:' Codi's mother testifies in Cory Bigsby murder trial
She claimed she had not spoken to Codi since April 2021 – about nine months before he was reported missing.
She claimed that in April 2021, she got an email from Bigsby that read, in part, "He's [Codi] still doing the same stuff... He needs to come back to you... I do not want to seriously hurt him to protect my babies." She did not believe the claims Bigsby was making in the email, she said.
Who is Codi Bigsby?
Many are hoping the trial will provide answers to a question the Hampton community has been asking for over two years: What happened to Codi Bigsby?
Codi was 4 years old when he was reported missing in January 2022. Since then, there's been no trace of him, but law enforcement believes he's dead.
Over a year later in June 2023, Cory Bigsby was charged with murdering Codi.
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Judge will allow use of Cory Bigsby's confessions about his missing son
He's also facing child abuse and neglect charges that are unrelated to Codi's disappearance.
Since Codi was reported missing, the community has organized search parties, decorated a fence in his honor and rallied to fight for answers.
We have a crew covering Cory Bigsby's trial all week. Stay with News 3 for updates.
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