Photo: Instagram
False hope.
By Alexis George — Written on Apr 09, 2019
Timmothy James Pitzen was born October 18, 2004 in Aurora, Illinois. The now 14-year old boy has been missing for seven years, 10 months, and 23 days.
May 11, 2011 was the last day that Timmothy was seen. His father, James Pitzen dropped him off to Greenman Elementary School and early that morning between 8:10 and 8:15 a.m. He was checked out of school by his mother, Amy Joan Marie Fry-Pitzen. She claimed that there was a family emergency and that was why Timmothy needed to be taken out of school.
Two hours later she dropped her car off to a repair shop and had one of the employees take her and Timothy to the Brookfield Zoo. Later on that afternoon, the two went back to the shop to retrieve the vehicle and she proceeded to drive to the Keylime Cove Resort. They spent the night there and the next morning were spotted on the security footage at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin.
This would be the last time that Timmothy would be seen. So who is Timmothy Pitzen? Here's everything you need to know about Timmothy Pitzen's disappearance and the new details surrounding his case.
Timmoty's father speaks out about his son's disappearance.
1. His mother was involved in his disappearance
Two days after being taken out of school, Timmothy's mother made several phone calls to various members of the family including her mother and brother-in-law early that afternoon. Fry-Pitzen informed the family members that Timmothy was safe and that the pair was not in any danger. Her husband was not one of the people who was called. The school had notified him that Timmothy was not on the premises when he went to pick up his son after school on May 11, and he was attempting to reach the pair.
The cellphone records showed that Fry-Pitzen was somewhere in Sterling, Illinois near Route 40, but an exact location was not determined. Timmothy could be heard in the background during his mother's phone calls and that was the last time Timmothy was proven to be with his mother.
Later, on the night of May 13, Fry-Pitzen was spotted on a security camera at a Family Dollar store where she purchased envelopes, a pen and paper. Approximately half an hour later she was spotted at Sullivan's Food Store. Timmothy was not with her at either location. Fry-Pitzen ended her night at the Rockford Inn. It was here that she took her own life. The mother was found on May 14 by a hotel maid.
A note was found saying that she apologized for the mess she caused but that Timmothy was safe with people who cared for him. She said he would never be found.
2. It is not certain that Timmothy is still alive
Timmothy was not found in the room with his mother. However, when inspecting her vehicle, police said that a concerning amount of the blood found in the car belonged to Timmothy. Further examination of Fry-Pitzen's vehicle showed that it had been parked in a grassy area that was close to a highway and potentially a stream.
Two years later in 2013, Fry-Pitzen's phone was found, but that did not lead the police any closer to finding Timmothy.
3. An Ohio man pretended to be the missing child
The last time the case was really publicized was back in August 2018 when it was broadcast on Live PD during the "Missing" segment of the show. Then on April 3, 2019, Timmothy was thought to have been found. Local residents in Kentucky saw a teenager wandering the streets and proceeded to call the police. When the police arrived and approached the young man, he told them he was Timmothy Pitzen.
The next day it was revealed that he was not Timmothy Pitzen, but Brian Rini. The 23-year old from Ohio is a convicted felon who was just released from prison in March. According to Fox News, Rini had told police that he had had been abused for years and just managed to escape his captors. After a DNA test proved that he was not Timmothy Pitzen, Rini admitted that he had seen the story about Pitzen's disappeareance and wanted to get away from his own family.
Court documents prove that Rini has a history of mental health problems and was treated at a center in Ohio for people with substance abuse and mental health problems. Rini's brother Jonathan Rini spoke up about his brother's actions.
"I wasn't surprised he did something stupid," Jonathan Rini said. "I was just surprised he stooped that low for attention."
Jonathan felt terrible about what his brother's actions did to Pitzen's family.
"It's too much for them," he said. "They shouldn't have to go through this. "No one in the world should have to go through this."
Rini could be facing up to eight years in prison facing charges of making false statements to federal agents.
4. The hoax reopens his family's wounds
Getting their hopes up just to find out that someone was pretending to be Timmothy was heartbreaking for the family. Timmothy's aunt told CNN that it was like reliving the day Timmothy disappeared all over again. Timmothy's father compared the feeling to ripping off a scab.
"It’s just painful,” he said in an interview. “Now you’ve gotta wait for the scab to heal," he said.
5. His grandmother has hope for a new lead
According to FoxNews, Timmothy's grandmother Linda Pitzen hopes that the new publicity her grandson's case has received in light of this hoax will lead to new details about Timmothy's whereabouts. She said she hopes that Rini understands all the hurt he has caused.
Law enforcement has not yet given up hope of finding Timmothy.
"Although we are disappointed that this turned out to be a hoax, we remain diligent in our search for Timmothy, as our missing person's case remains unsolved," Aurora police Sgt. Bill Rowley said.
Alexis George is a writer who covers love, relationship advice, astrology, personality topics and celebrity news.