Teen Claims To Be The Boy Who Went Missing Almost 8 Years Ago

A previously unsolved mystery is back in the spotlight, and it looks like we might have answers.

Nearly 8 years ago, Timmothy Pitzen, who was 6 years old at the time, went missing. His mother picked him up from school, took him to the zoo and was ultimately found dead by an apparent suicide in her hotel room. She left behind an ominous note, stating that her son was fine and safe but would never be found.

On Wednesday, that all changed. A 14-year-old boy who escaped from two kidnappers is claiming to be Timmothy Pitzen. He says they’ve held him captive for the last 7 years.

Audio of police responding to report of teen saying he's Timmothy Pitzen, Illinois child who disappeared 7 years ago. https://t.co/ZdipvkBO3E pic.twitter.com/henPumKaan

— USA TODAY Video (@usatodayvideo) April 4, 2019

Wow- A teenage boy who was found by police in Newport, Kentucky, says he is Timmothy Pitzen, who disappeared in Illinois seven years ago. https://t.co/hLOahwBmjo

— Heather Childers (@HeatherChilders) April 3, 2019

“We’ve probably had thousands of tips of him popping up in different areas,” Aurora police Sgt. Bill Rowley said. “We have no idea what we’re driving down there for. It could be Pitzen. It could be a hoax.”

Police aren’t telling the family too much, and I can understand why to an extent. It’d be irresponsible to jump the gun.

“We just know a 14-year-old boy was found and went to the police,” Pitzen’s grandmother Alana Anderson said. “We don’t want to get our hopes up and our family’s hopes up until we know something. We just don’t want to get our hopes up. We’ve had false reports and false hopes before.”

Police in the Cincinnati suburb of Sharonville wrote in a short incident report that the boy said Wednesday morning that he had “just escaped from two kidnappers” he described as white men with body builder-type physiques. They were in a Ford SUV with Wisconsin license plates and had been staying at a Red Roof Inn.

Sharonville police said on the department’s Facebook page that the information about the boy’s reported escape was received by police in Campbell County, Kentucky.

“The City of Sharonville Police Department, like every other police agency in the greater Cincinnati area, was requested to check their Red Roof Inn hotels regarding this incident,” the post read. “To the best of our knowledge, we have no information indicating that the missing juvenile was ever in the City of Sharonville.”

A DNA test is currently underway.

I desperately hope this family gets the answers they’re looking for.

h/t The AP