News

Actions

13 years later, missing Alabama boy found in Ohio, father charged with abduction

Posted at 11:56 PM, Nov 04, 2015
and last updated 2015-11-04 23:57:30-05

CLEVELAND, Ohio — A child who was reported missing in Alabama 13 years ago has been found safe and unharmed in Cleveland, Ohio, authorities say.

Julian Hernandez

Julian Hernandez, Credit: Fox 8 (Cuyahoga County Jail)

Julian Hernandez was in the legal custody of his mother when he disappeared on August 28, 2002. He was 5 then.

It was suspected that his father, Bobby Hernandez, took him as part of a noncustodial parental abduction, according to the Vestavia Hills Police Department, just south of Birmingham.

A lead in the case came Sunday, when Vestavia Hills police were contacted by the FBI in Cleveland about a missing child.

The missing child they were able to locate and positively identify is now 18. Julian’s mother and family were notified of his recovery.

Bobby Hernandez was arrested Monday in the abduction. The court records from Cuyahoga County in Ohio did not specify exact charges against him. CNN reached out to attorney Ralph DeFranco’s office for further comment Wednesday night but did not immediately receive a response.

Bobby Hernandez made his first appearance in the Cuyahoga County Court on Wednesday, and his bond was set at $250,000. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for November 12.

Bobby Hernandez

Bobby Hernandez Credit: Fox 8 (Cuyahoga County Jail)

In addition to the charges in Ohio, Hernandez will face charges in Jefferson County, Alabama, in the 2002 abduction. He may face additional charges.

The Vestavia Hills Police Department worked in collaboration with the FBI’s Violent Crime Task Force in Cleveland, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Birmingham Division of the FBI.