The Gastonia Police Department and the FBI have spent countless hours investigating the disappearance and death of 6-year-old Maddox Ritch. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) recently completed and published the results of the autopsy on Maddox's body. The report, completed by the Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner's Office states, “In conjunction with investigative information at this time, which gives no indication of other than an accidental drowning, it seems reasonable to conclude that the likely cause of death is drowning.” The Gastonia Police Department is grateful to the Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner's Office for its thorough and detailed work.