A 23-year-old man has been identified as the person claiming to be missing boy Timmothy Pitzen, according to reports.
On April 4, the FBI said the person, who was found in Kentucky, is not Pitzen who disappeared in 2011, after DNA testing was carried out. It’s not clear if he will be charged with a crime.
“DNA results have been returned indicating the person in question is not Timmothy Pitzen,” FBI Louisville wrote on Twitter. “A local investigation continues into this person’s true identity.” The FBI said that federal “law enforcement has not and will not forget Timmothy, and we hope to one day reunite him with his family. Unfortunately, that day will not be today.”
Angela Ingram with Local12 tweeted Rini’s mugshot.
“The car itself belonged to a car dealership and was allegedly on an overnight test drive. However, the actual owner of the name and Social Security number used called police dismayed at receiving a citation in the mail, suspecting his brother had used his identity in the incident. The brother, Brian Michael Rini, was in the Medina County Jail at the time and was charged with falsification as well as the original traffic citation,” it added.
Timmothy Pitzen Case
The police department in Aurora, Illinois, where Timmothy disappeared eight years ago, released a statement.“As you likely now know, the FBI Cincinnati office has just released a statement indicating that the person in question located yesterday morning was not our missing person, Timmothy Pitzen,” the department said.
“Any remaining investigation into who that person is, including any of the allegations made by that person at the time of his contact with authorities down there remains the purview of the local authorities in Ohio. Although we are disappointed that this turned out to be a hoax, we remain diligent in our search for Timmothy, as our missing person’s case remains unsolved. As this is now no longer an ‘Aurora’ case, we will defer inquiries to the appropriate jurisdictions in Ohio.”
“There have been so many tips and sightings and whatnot, and you try not to panic or be overly excited,” said Timmothy’s grandmother, Alana Anderson. “Every day you hope, and every day you worry.”
She didn’t answer a phone call immediately after the FBI announcement.
At the time of Timmothy’s disappearance, police said that the boy’s mother may have dropped him off with a friend, noting that the boy’s car seat and Spider-Man backpack were gone. Police also found credit card receipts showing that she bought children’s clothing and toys in Wisconsin.
Timmothy’s grandmother said Thursday that her daughter had fought depression for years and was having problems in her marriage to Timmothy’s father. Some news reports suggested she was afraid she would lose custody of the boy in a divorce because of her mental instability.