(HOUSTON) — In a stunning twist, a Texas man who was found outside a church last week, eight years after his mother reported him missing as a teenager, had never been missing in the first place, Houston police announced at a news conference Thursday.
Rudy Farias, now 25, had been reported missing the day after he disappeared while walking his dogs on March 6, 2015, according to police.
He was found outside a church on June 29, police said.
Police announced Thursday that “Rudy returned home the following day on March 8, 2015,” but his mother allegedly kept deceiving police, insisting her son was missing.
Both Farias and his mother had interactions with police over the years, during which they allegedly gave fake names, police said.
Although Farias’ mother filed a missing persons report, no charges are being filed at this time regarding filing false reports or providing false names, police said.
Farias’ mother had allegedly claimed “her nephew was the person friends and family were seen coming and going,” authorities said. Police said they spoke with relatives, friends, neighbors and medical professionals in their investigation to determine Farias was never missing.
Farias and his mother were interviewed by Houston police on Wednesday. Farias did not make any statements about sexual assault in his interview with police, authorities said.
Farias is currently safe and is with his mother, by choice, police said.
The investigation is ongoing, police said, adding that new leads are coming in.
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