SAN ANTONIO -- A search at a San Antonio landfill for clues in the case of a missing baby from Arizona has been called off.

During a news conference Friday, San Antonio Police Chief Bill McManus said after crews searched 16 days through 4,600 tons of debris at the Tessman Landfill, the search didn't yield any clues that could lead authorities to Gabriel Johnson, who was last seen in late December in San Antonio with his mother, Elizabeth Johnson, who is jailed in Arizona.

McManus said the end of the search was bittersweet.

"The good news is that we have no homicide at this point. Bad news is that the case remains open," he said.

McManus said that the Missing Persons and Homicide units will be handling leads that are still coming in daily. He urged the public to call 911 or call 1-800-THE-LOST (843-5678) with any clues.

"We still have hopes the baby is alive, but we just don't know," he said.

McManus said the case has given police fits because Elizabeth Johnson refuses to talk with detectives. This week, she refused to leave her cell for a court hearing.

"It's frustrating and baffling," McManus said. "She claims she didn't kill the baby, but yet she's not giving up where it is. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me."

Elizabeth Johnson has claimed that she gave the baby to couple in San Antonio. She also allegedly sent the baby's father, Logan McQueary, a text message saying that she had killed their son and put his body in a trash bin, which prompted the landfill search. She later recanted the claim.

The couple was in the midst of a custody dispute when Elizabeth Johnson left Arizona with the baby. McQueary has been informed of the decision to call off the landfill search but police did not describe his reaction to the decision.

Chief McManus said if the baby is never found, it will be up to the Bexar County District Attorney's Office and Arizona law enforcement to decide if to prosecute Elizabeth Johnson.

Also at the news conference, McManus thanked more than 35 "partners" in the private sector for their efforts in the search. He said without their help, the search would have been costly.