Police: D'Wanna Wiggins, Mother of Missing Child D'Wan Sims, Passes Away

(CBS DETROIT) – It's been almost 26 years to the day that D'wan Sims went missing here at what used to be wonderland mall and four days before the anniversary of his disappearance, the boy's mother D'Wanna Wiggins passed away.

Years after building a new life in North Carolina as a wife, mother and trustee of her church, Wiggins died Dec. 7 according to the Durham Police Department.

Police did not release the cause of her death, but officers told CW50/CBS Detroit it's under investigation.

Back in 1994 — Wiggins then known as D'Wanna Harris — found herself in a tailspin when her son vanished Dec. 11 while shopping with her at Wonderland Mall.

Surveillance video showed Wiggins at the mall but her son never appeared on camera forming a cloud of suspicion.

Wiggins was not charged with any wrong-doing and the case went cold.

But the mystery behind the 4-year-old's whereabouts still lingers.

Wiggins' friend says the infamy of the case doesn't reflect the person she knew.

"The D'Wanna that I knew, she was a sweet person. Loved her kids, always talked about her kids. Regardless of what we all think, we can't judge her because we don't know the truth. We don't know what happened to him. At this point he's still missing," the friend said.

Last year a 25-year-old man claiming to be Sims submitted a DNA sample to Livonia Police, but Wiggins never sent a sample in return.

Members from Wiggins' church told CW50/CBS Detroit her memorial is planned for Saturday, Dec. 12.

© 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.