NORFOLK, Va. — Now that the jury trial for Cody Bigsby is over in Hampton, former Hampton Police Chief Mark Talbot is speaking out about the high-profile case of missing Codi Bigsby.
The child was reported missing by his father on January 31, 2022, but police believe the boy’s father killed him on June 18, 2021.
Talbot is now chief of the Norfolk Police Department. At the headquarters in downtown Norfolk on Thursday afternoon, he said that he feels sad about the situation but is glad the criminal justice system worked as intended.
Disappearance of Codi Bigsby
Hampton man Cory Bigsby found guilty of killing his son Codi
Talbot said he learned early in the investigation that Cory Bigsby was responsible for the child’s death.
“He’s an incredibly poor liar as you saw,” stated Chief Talbot. "There was very little that he had to say that seemed to map onto the truth. He was aggressive with his lies which makes it especially egregious, so it wasn’t real tough to figure out."
News 3 asked if there was a particular piece of evidence that stood out in the beginning stages of the investigation.
Watch previous coverage: Hampton man Cory Bigsby found guilty of killing his son Codi
“The story that he told and the way he told that story," he said. “His demeanor while he was delivering an absurd story was also not consistent with somebody who was sick over their 4-year-old disappearing.”
Talbot said he still believes Cory Bigsby beat and killed his son.
Corrections officers from the Hampton Roads Regional Jail testified during the seven-day trial. Several got emotional on the stand as they read letters that Bigsby allegedly wrote, detailing how he put his son’s body in a trash bag and buried him in Maryland. News 3 asked Talbot if authorities considered transporting Bigsby to the site to accompany them on the search.
Disappearance of Codi Bigsby
Correctional officers testify about alleged confessions from Cory Bigsby
“We did talk about that, and you know at some point, if you spend any time with him, you come to believe him so little, that it doesn’t seem useful to ask for his assistance, and I think that is true for that circumstance," said Talbot. "That would have been a thorough waste of our time.”
“Having interacted with Cory Bigsby, I am not hopeful that we will ever find out what happened to Codi. I’m not at all hopeful,” said Talbot. “Maybe at some point, he can see fit to let us all know what he did to his son. If he doesn’t tell us, I think it is fairly unlikely we will ever know.”
Bigsby faces up to 40 years in prison for the second degree murder charge plus five years for concealing a body. The Commonwealth’s Attorney says they also plan to try him on child neglect charges.
Judge James Hawks is scheduled to sentence Bigsby on June 18, three years after the date that police believe Codi was murdered.
