A young boy who went missing three years ago has been found safe, bringing an end to a disappearance that left family, friends and supporters searching for answers.
Andrew Escobar was located in El Paso, Texas several years after police said his mother, Miriam Felix, fled with her then 11 year-old-son in July of 2023.
Andrew’s father, Juan Escobar, and authorities remained committed to finding him ever since he was taken.
Juan told KAOT7 that he and Andrew’s stepmom, Monique Escobar, were so determined to find him they even quit their jobs to search full-time.
Juan said he was in “shock and disbelief” when he received a call on Wednesday from an El Paso police officer indicating that Miriam had activated an alert while trying to cross the border from Mexico into the U.S.
“His mom triggered some sort of warning, and then they checked his ID, and then that’s when they recognized that he was listed as a missing person, and that’s when they detained them both,” Juan explained.
Before he was found, Andrew was last seen in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.
Albuquerque police said Miriam was facing multiple felony warrants after violating her custody agreement.
Juan continued to celebrate big milestones like his son’s birthday, despite not knowing his location for years. “We were best friends,” he told KRQE in January. “We would always do everything together. We loved to make videos together of what we were doing and just joke around a lot. He was always joking around.”
While Juan is thankful to have Andrew back, he disclosed that his son’s mother had traveled to multiple countries while she was on the run that included Albania and Turkey. Even though his son appears to be physically well, Juan said he’s concerned about Andrew’s mental health after everything he’s been through.
“Physically, he’s well, but he’s just been through so much the last three years emotionally and mentally,” Juan said.
Darlene Gomez who has represented the family during their search efforts said that Miriam is currently awaiting extradition back to Mexico. Gomez said that right now there’s a lot of unknowns as the reunited family gets reacquainted after so many lost years.
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