A man who was allegedly falsely reported missing for more than eight years by his mother has now moved out of the family home.
Rudy Farias was 17 when his mother first reported him missing. He had allegedly vanished while walking his dogs in northwest Houston on March 7, 2015.
Police said that they had found the now 25-year-old man on July 1, more than eight years after his alleged disappearance, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
However, in a July 6 press conference, Lt. Christopher Zamora of the Houston Police Department said that Farias had actually returned home one day after his alleged disappearance.
In fact, police had been in contact with Farias and his mother, Janie Santana, over the eight-year period, Zamora said, but the two had allegedly given police false information to make officers believe Farias was still missing.
Police have so far not pressed charges against Santana.
But a local activist alleged at a press conference on Friday that Santana had not only kept her son hidden but had drugged and tortured him.
“She was giving him drugs. She was punishing him by locking him in a room over and over,” said Quanell X, according to the New York Post.
“She convinced him that law enforcement wanted to put him in jail, that law enforcement was looking for him because he ran away and that because he ran away, he was going to go to prison,” the activist claimed, per the New York Post.
Quanell X said that police heard Farias make these allegations about his mother, but police have neither confirmed nor denied these statements, the New York Post reported.
Pauline Sanchez, Farias’ aunt, told the Houston Chronicle that Farias has left his mother’s home and is currently staying with a family friend.
“Nobody’s going to go around him and he’s not coming out of that place until there’s no media around and he’s free and comfortable,” said Sanchez, according to the Houston Chronicle. “It won’t be until he knows he can cope by himself.”
Sanchez said she expects that Farias will emerge and contact his family when he is ready, and they will help him with his next steps.
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner tweeted that the investigation into the case was ongoing and asked that “everyone respect the investigative process.”
