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Cameron Serafin is missing. (Courtesy of Fairfax County Police)
UPDATE: Wednesday- 4/17/2013, 6:23pm ET
WASHINGTON – A missing Fairfax County boy and his mother have been found in the Las Vegas area, police say.
Cameron and Rebecca Serafin were found at a hotel, after a local resident recognized the pair from a news story.
Las Vegas police reviewed surveillance footage from a hotel, confirming the pair had been there.
The two were found at another hotel in the area.
WTOP spoke with Cameron’s Dad, Joe Serafin, as he made his way to BWI Marshall Airport for the first flight he could find to Las Vegas.
“I am ecstatic. I am so happy now,” Serafin said.
“That’s the best news anybody could ever receive, to finally know that this has a happy ending.”
Serafin says Cameron is in the custody of Child Protective Services, and he got to talk to his son on the phone.
“I told him that I loved him, that I missed him, and that Daddy’s on his way to go see him now.”
Serafin believes his ex-wife Rebecca has mental issues.
“I hope that she gets the help that she needs,” he said.
Police say Cameron is safe and in good condition.
Rebecca Serafin is being held as a fugitive from justice. She is awaiting extradition back to Virginia.
EARLIER: TUESDAY – 4/16/2013, 5:16pm ET
WASHINGTON – A missing Fairfax County boy was last seen at an airport in Las Vegas with his mother Thursday.
Fairfax County police said Cameron Serafin was spotted in surveillance footage at the baggage claim area at McCarran International Airport around 10 p.m. He was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt, black and white pajama pants and a gray, train engineers hat.
His mother Rebecca Serafin was wearing a black hat, dark jacket and blue jeans. She was carrying two large pieces of luggage, police announced Tuesday.
They arrived in Las Vegas on a Southwest Airlines flight from Birmingham, Ala., police say.
Investigators believe they are headed to Los Angeles.
Joe Serafin tells WTOP that his ex-wife brought Cameron to California a couple of years ago for an extended period of time.
How to Help: Use #findcameron on Twitter. |
A warrant for Rebecca Serafin’s arrest was issued after they were spotted at the Birmingham airport. She faces a felony charge of parental abduction.
EARLIER : Sunday- 4/14/2013, 12:10pm ET
WASHINGTON – The father of a missing 5-year-old boy tells WTOP he believes his ex- wife may be heading to the west coast with their son.
Joe Serafin says he thinks Rebecca Serafin and Cameron may be heading west, but is not aware that she has any friends or family in that part of the country.
Fairfax County police say Rebecca Serafin is now being charged with felony parental abduction, because police believe she’s taken Cameron out of Virginia where she and Joe Serafin share custody.
Police sources tell WTOP they’ve tracked Rebecca Serafin and Cameron from BWI Airport to Birmingham, Ala., but it’s not known where they are at this point.
EARLIER: Thursday – 4/11/2013, 6:59pm ET
WASHINGTON – A 5-year-old boy is missing, and the boy’s father and Fairfax County police are asking for the public’s help in locating him.
Cameron Serafin is believed to be with his mom, Rebecca Serafin. Fairfax County police in the Reston district say they are concerned about his welfare.
The missing boy’s father, Joe Serafin, spoke to WTOP Thursday afternoon. He is very scared about his son.
“I’m worried about him, I don’t know where he is, I don’t know what’s happening to him,” Serafin says.
The child was supposed to have been returned to his dad on Sunday.
According to police, Rebecca Serafin altered her appearance and Cameron’s appearance in an “apparent attempt to avoid being located.”
Serafin says his ex-wife, Rebecca has a history of mental illness and substance abuse, which includes prescription drugs and heroin.
He says she disappeared with their son once before in 2011. The couple shares custody of Cameron.
Police tell WTOP that Rebecca Serafin also goes by the name Rebecca Love and Cameron also answers to Cameron Love.
He is 3-foot-5 and weighs about 40 pounds.
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This photo shows what Rebecca and Cameron Serafin apparently now look like. (Courtesy of Fairfax County Police)
An arrest warrant has been issued for Rebecca Serafin, 32, charging her with a misdemeanor of custodial interference.
She is 5-foot-4 and weighs between 120 and 130 pounds.
Rebecca lives at home with her parents in the Great Falls Area, Serafin says. He says she packed some bags and told her parents she was going on a weekend retreat to a friend’s lake house. But, he says, there were an awful lot of bags packed.
Serafin says he knew immediately when they didn’t return that something was wrong. He says she wouldn’t answer any telephone calls or texts.
That’s when he called Fairfax County Police.
He has a message for Rebecca: “Please, just get Cameron home safely. Nothing else matters.”
He pleads with anyone with information to also help: “Please, help bring my son back.”
Information can be emailed to Crime Solvers. Police say people with information may text “TIP187” plus their message to CRIMES/274637 or call police at 703-691-2131.
WTOP’s Darci Marchese contributed to this report. Follow @WTOP on Twitter.