Tennessee Man Faces Kidnapping Charges On Long Island: Suffolk PD

PATCHOGUE, NY — A 20-year-old Tennessee man is now facing kidnapping charges after he was found with a missing autistic boy from Long Island sleeping in a vehicle at a rest stop in Virginia early Wednesday morning, Suffolk police said.

Police said “multiple law enforcement partners in Virginia” were able to locate the pair and found them sleeping in a vehicle at a rest stop in Montgomery, Virginia, at about 1:30 a.m. on Wednesday. The boy, who had been reported missing by his family on Tuesday, was unharmed, a police spokeswoman said.

The boy’s identity or place of residence is not being released, which is a standard practice used by police in cases involving minors.

The 20-year-old, whose identity is being withheld pending his return to Suffolk, was taken into custody “without incident,” and the boy “will be released to the custody of his family,” police said.

During their initial investigation, detectives from the 5th Precinct in Patchogue learned the boy had been communicating with the man through an instant messaging app, which was not named, and he “had possibly been taken out of state by him.”

Detectives then tracked the pair to the rest stop, police said.

A police spokeswoman contacted with a request for further details on Wednesday night said detectives are not releasing any more information about the case at this time.

The investigation is ongoing, police said. Detectives are asking anyone with information to contact the 5th Squad at 631-854-8552.