Sheila Vilvens Cincinnati Enquirer Published 2:47 PM EDT Apr 5, 2019 CINCINNATI – Events played out in the Cincinnati area this week like a scene from the documentary "The Imposter." On April 3, an individual was found on the streets of Newport, Kentucky, claiming to be the missing child Timmothy Pitzen. A day later, DNA testing proved otherwise. It was not Pitzen – an Illinois boy who went missing in May 2011 at age 6 – it was 23-year-old Brian Rini of Medina, Ohio. "The Imposter" recounts an eerily similar story from over two decades ago in Texas. Frenchman Frederic Bourdin fraudulently claimed he was Nicholas Barclay, a Texas boy who at age 14 never returned home after playing basketball with friends. 'Devastated': Timmothy Pitzen's family relives loss again, determined to keep looking for him Instances of attempted deception like the one experienced in Newport are rare, according to John Bischoff, … [Read more...] about Timmothy Pitzen-Brian Rini case is ‘unique’: missing children center
National center for missing and exploited children
Teen claims to be missing child who vanished 8 years ago after his mum’s suicide
A teenager found wandering the streets of an American city claims he is the missing boy at the centre of a eight-year search that followed his mother's suicide. On Wednesday a child with bruising on his face approached police officers and told them he had been held hostage for years by kidnappers with 'body-builder physiques'. The boy, who was "very scared and agitated" according to neighbours, said he had managed to flee from two kidnappers who had been holding him in a Red Roof Inn believed to be in Cincinnati, Ohio. Seeing his chance to escape the boy fled across a bridge and over the state line into Newport, Kentucky. One woman told CBS Chicago the boy told her that he had been running for two hours. He also said he had "been passed around for years". The boy explained to authorities that he is Timmothy Pitzen, a six-year-old who vanished without a trace on May 11, 2011. If true his reappearance will shed light on a missing person's case that has baffled the Aurora, Illinois … [Read more...] about Teen claims to be missing child who vanished 8 years ago after his mum’s suicide
Who is Timmothy Pitzen, when did he disappear and has he been found?
TIMMOTHY Pitzen, who vanished in 2011, may have been found after a "bruised" teen told cops he escaped two kidnappers with "body builder-type physiques". Here's what we know about the boy's mysterious disappearance. Who is Timmothy Pitzen and when did he disappear? On May 11, 2011, Jim Pitzen dropped off his son, Timmothy Pitzen – then aged six – at his elementary school. Later that day, the boy's mum, Amy Fry-Pitzen, unexpectedly signed him out of class at his school in the Chicago-area suburb of Aurora, Illinois. Although she claimed there was a family emergency, it later transpired that she took him on visits to local tourist attractions. After going to the zoo and a water park, the pair spent the night of May 11 at the Kalahari Resort, another water park at Wisconsin Dells in the neighbouring state. CCTV showed them checking out at 10am on May 12 – the last time Timmothy was seen. Police found Amy dead in a hotel 100 miles away in Rockford, Illinois. She … [Read more...] about Who is Timmothy Pitzen, when did he disappear and has he been found?
Moment bruised, scared boy missing for eight years is ‘found wandering streets’
This photo shows the moment a boy at the centre of an eight-year missing person's hunt reportedly revealed himself. A 14-year-old child who had a bruised face and was "very scared" approached police officers in Newport outside Cincinnati, on Wednesday. He told them his name was Timmothy Pitzen and that he had been held against his will by two 'body-builder' kidnappers. Timmothy disappeared in 2011 aged six after his mum killed herself and left a note that said her son was safe but "would never be found". Pictures surfaced of the hoody-wearing teenager who claims he is Timmothy standing on the streets of Newport. Photographer Sharon Hall said she was one of four people to find the boy. Hall told FOX 19 she thought the child in question was trying to steal her neighbour’s car. “From out the window, I couldn’t see who was standing to the kerb,” she said. “But I looked out and came back in and... there was a young man standing by my neighbour’s … [Read more...] about Moment bruised, scared boy missing for eight years is ‘found wandering streets’
Madeleine McCann’s parents’ hope as Netflix documentary claims missing child’s alive after being abducted by traffickers
KATE and Gerry McCann have vowed to "never lose hope" that missing Madeleine will be found - as a bombshell new documentary claims she is still alive. The show says people traffickers abducted the three-year-old in Portugal in 2007 - but her parents refused to take part in filming. Last night the official Find Maddie Campaign website posted: "never lose hope." In the snap which updates their Facebook cover the happy youngster is captured beaming under a white sunhat, a single braided plait in her blond locks. A green and yellow ribbon symbolising hope and solidarity is underneath the message on a vivid green backdrop. The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann features 40 experts and key figures in the case, some of whom argue she was taken to another foreign country. Jim Gamble, the top child protection cop in the UK’s first Maddie investigation, says: “I absolutely believe that in my lifetime we will find out what has happened to Madeleine McCann. “There’s huge … [Read more...] about Madeleine McCann’s parents’ hope as Netflix documentary claims missing child’s alive after being abducted by traffickers