A Texas man who was reported missing eight years ago as a teenager never disappeared and had been living with his mother most of the time, police said.
Rudy Farias made international headlines over the weekend when he was reported to have been “safely located” in Houston after disappearing in March 2015 when he was 17.
His mother, Janie Santana, said at the time that her son “was receiving the care he needs to overcome his trauma, but at this time, he is non-verbal and unable to communicate with us.”
However, Houston police said he returned home a day later.
The teenager, now 25, was seen by many people coming and going from the house over the years. But Santana identified him as a nephew, police said.
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Houston police Lt. Christopher Zamora told reporters that Farias “wasn’t missing for the eight-year period.”
“In fact, both Rudy’s mother and Rudy himself gave fictitious names while interacting with various patrol officers,” he said.
“After investigators spoke to him yesterday, it was discovered that he returned home the following day.
“The mother, Janie, continued to mislead the police by remaining adamant that Rudy was still missing.”
Local prosecutors have so far declined to press charges against the mother or son, and police have not offered a motive for the couple’s actions.
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner declined to answer questions about the mental health of Farias or his mother and said police were “right at the beginning” of their investigation into what happened.
The announcement came a week after police said they found Farias after receiving a call about a person lying on the ground outside a southeast Houston church.
After being found, Farias was taken to the hospital before detectives interviewed him and Santana on Wednesday.
