we were very focused on finding relisha. >> reporter: instead they found the body of janitor kahlil tatumho bee friended 8- year-old relisha rudd -- befriended 8-year-old relisha rudd at the d.c. homeless shelter where she was staying with her mother and three siblings. police believe tatum abducted relisha, then bought garbage bags, a shovel and lime and then spent hours at the park which sparked the grueling inch by inch search. >> this is both physically and mentally tedious work. this is very draining on those people who have been here doing these searches day after day after day. >> reporter: on monday in between police news conferences officers went door to door to tell neighbors what was going on. the search for a little girl only half over one month after she was last seen alive. >> our primary focus was to find relisha. the search is underway and there's still a lot of work to do. we are not finished here. >> the chief would not say precisely where they found tatum's body, but sources tell wusa9 it was found in the storage building of the park. tonight police closed down that par

these distinctive ttoos are what lead police to say they have found kahlil tatum. after days of fruitless searching in and around kenilworth aquatic gardens for signs of 8-year-old rely, rudd, the intensity heightened this afternoon when the body of a man was found in a utility shed. this evening, d.c. police chief cathy lanier confirmed the body is most likely that of the 51-year-old man who is believed to have relisha in his custody. >> we have tentatively identified the person we found today of that of mr. tatum. everything that we have is consistent with what we know about his appearance. and it does still appear at this point that this was a suicide. >> reporter: police believe relisha's mother gave the 8-year-old over to tatum's custody at the family center on january 26th. tatum, who worked there as a janitor, posed as a doctor to excuse her lengthy absence from school. she wasn't reported missing for a month. the news frustrated those who know the little girl and hold on to the faint hope she'll be found alive. >> i feel like he was a coward. not only, that

this after the body of kahlil tatum was found in atorage building here yesterday.lice deskribcribed it as a caf suicide. did you find anything in or around tatum's body that might- gi you somindication as to where relisha might be? >> no, we did not. >> reporter: tatum was the of ect in the disappearance relish and the 8-year-old girl has been missing n for week shoochlt is seen here walking with tatum down the corridor of a d.c. hotel on february 26th. relisha lived at a d.c. homeless shelter, and tatum was the janitor there, and police believe that he may have killed relisha, and then disposed of herody in the kenilworth park. police say that the last confirmed sighting of her was march 1wst. on march 2nd, police say they have evidence th tatum was in the park for an extended period of time. the last time that tum was seen alive was march 20th, after his wife was shot and lled at the red roof inn on oxon hill road. tatum was wanted in that murd. made to get away on the metro. some time after that, tatum made his way back to this kenilworth park, into that storag

including sewers, vast wooded areas and some buildings like the place where police found the body of kahlil tatumthe victim of an apparent suicide. police sad been dead for at least 36 hours when they happened upon the body monday night but he might have been dead for days. he was the last person seen with ralisha. they spent time together as he was a janitor at the homeless shelter where she lived. >> if you look over, i guess, to southwest over here, it's -- that's kind of where the body was found. this? >> yes, uh-huh. they were actually in the woods with us, yes. and some police officers, also. >> the bitter dail of finding tatum's body was unsettling for volunteers as they set out on their search? >> i hope she is here, but it's kind of hard to believe that, you know, that this man has killed himself and killed his wife, you know. but why would he do something like to a little kid. >> she could be alive. >> that's why we are asking for the public's health. we don't have a crystal ball. >> the police chief says the search will continues for a few more days. her crews have methodically searche

tatum -- kahlil tatum's body was recovered. mark albert has more. >> reizpporter: the search inside the 700-acre kenilworth park has been exhausted. camewater cameras -- underwater cameras, hundreds of volunteers and cadets. after five days they found what they did not expect. >> this discovery was a shock for us. we were very focused on finding relisha and that's what we came here for. >> reporter: i the body of janitor kahlil tatum who befriended 8-year-old relisha rudd at the d.c. homeless shelter where she was staying with her mother