RPD: Boy, 7, found safe after being taken by mother
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A 7-year-old boy was found safe after Rochester Police say his mother took him on Tuesday, prompting a New York State Amber Alert and a search.
The boy was found safe at a home around midnight. The Amber Alert went out just before 8 p.m. and it was canceled after he was found.
RPD says his mother, 35-year-old Celeta Johnson, took him from North Water Street in the High Falls neighborhood around 11 a.m. Police believed the child may have been in danger. According to RPD, they were concerned about some court actions and statements from the mother but they wouldn’t get into further detail.
Child Protective Services called RPD officers around 2:45 p.m. to help them with finding the mother. Officers tracked her and the boy to Trust Street but when they couldn’t find them, they issued an Amber Alert.
RPD Lt. Michael Azzolina said that, while an Amber Alert brings the FBI on board, the biggest focus of the search remained in Rochester.
“Any time children are involved, they are a very vulnerable class of citizens in our community, and we obviously take every step we can to take every step of this investigation seriously when children are involved in a case like this,” he said.
A statement from RPD says they appreciated the help from the public, New York State Police, the FBI, and Child Protective Services with finding the child. Police are still investigating and no charges have been filed at this time.