TULSA -- A missing and endangered 5-year-old boy from Washington State has been found in Tulsa, and his biological parents have been arrested, police say.
A phone call from a child protective services worker in Washington to authorities in Ft. Smith, Ark., led to the arrest of Scott and Stephanie Mitchell, who were discovered in Tulsa with the young boy. Officers say she was very evasive during an interview with the Owasso Police Department.
According to the arrest report by an Owasso officer, Stephanie Mitchell was seen in a Jeep that Arkansas authorities described as a possible vehicle in which the parents might be traveling. Washington officials say the Mitchells are the child's biological parents but not the legal guardians.
The Ft. Smith Police Department was provided a cell phone number the couple has and began pinging for a location. It finally locked on a location of a hospital in Owasso. Arkansas police told Owasso police in a teletype that the Jeep would have a Nevada license plate.
A vehicle that matched the description was found in the Walmart parking lot in Owasso and Stephanie Mitchell was alone in the vehicle.
Officers say she presented an Oklahoma drivers license with a picture that appeared to be her. Police say Stephanie told them she was in Owasso to take her sister to the hospital for a broken tailbone. She said ER staff said there was nothing they could do for them. When asked where her sister was then, she said her husband had picked her up.
When asked where her 5-year-old son was, she stated she didn't know, according to the report. Police say she didn't appear concerned about the disappearance of her son. She said she had heard he had been missing for two weeks, officers say.
Police confronted her with information that they knew the three of them had checked into a hotel together in Weatherford, Okla., on June 9. When told she would be in trouble if she knew where her son was and wasn't telling them, police say she began sobbing and said her son was with her husband in a south Tulsa hotel.
Upon further investigation, police discovered the Jeep had been stolen from a car dealership. Officers then arrested Stephanie for kidnapping and being in possession of a stolen vehicle.
Scott was located trying to move from one south Tulsa hotel to another when he was discovered by police, with the boy. Scott was then arrested for kidnapping and being in possession of a stolen vehicle.
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