Teenager Applies To College, Then Learns He’s Been A “Missing Person”

Keep Reading ↓

At the age of 5, Julian Hernandez was taken away from his mother in Alabama.

Back in 2002, when his mother reported him missing, the search ended up with nothing. She suspected that the boy’s father, Bobby Hernandez, took him as part of a noncustodial parental abduction, but he vanished as well.

It was clear that Hernandez abducted his son during a custody dispute, but because he left no traces and emptied all previous bank accounts, it was impossible to find him.

It took 13 years for the police department to finally make a breakthrough on Julian Hernandez.

The story unraveled when the 18-year-old boy was applying to college.

While applying to college, Julian found out that his social security number did not match his name.

Julian went to his counselor for help and she ran a background check on Hernandez and discovered that he was listed as a missing person by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Local authorities were then notified and an investigation was done.

After months of investigation, it was confirmed that Julian Hernandez has been found.

The father, Bobby Hernandez, was charged with tampering with records and Officials say he will be extradited back to Alabama to face additional charges. These may include interfering with custody, a felony that carries imprisonment of up to 10 years. Julian’s mother has been notified, and she is overwhelmed with happiness.

The family released a statement saying, “Our family was overjoyed this week to locate Julian and learn that he is safe. We want to thank everyone for their prayers and support during Julian’s disappearance.”