HOUSTON – Investigators in the case of Rudolph “Rudy” Farias IV, the man who disappeared as a teen in 2015, spoke Thursday morning to provide updates on the case.
Farias was originally reported missing 8 years ago and was found around 10 p.m. on June 29 outside a church on 76th Street at Avenue L in Houston, near Buffalo Bayou.
Detectives said during a press conference, which can be viewed in the media player at the top of this article, that Farias actually returned home the day after he was reported missing on March 7, 2015.
Police declined to provide many details related to the investigation but did disclose that Farias is safe and currently staying with his mother by choice.
HPD referred to Farias as a “potential victim” and repeatedly referred to him as an adult, capable of making his own decisions.
Investigators said Farias has made contact with officers multiple times over the past 8 years but used fake names and dates of birth. Farias and his mother both provided false information during interactions when investigators visited the mother’s residence, where Farias also lives.
She allegedly told people that the person seen coming and going from her home was her nephew and not her son.
The Houston District Attorney’s office is currently declining to press any charges, officers said.
Community activist Quanell X has widely reported that he met with Farias and Farias’ mother and Houston Police Department detectives at a hotel near Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday.
Quanell came out of the hotel after speaking with police and spoke directly to the media, including reporters from KSAT’s sister station KPRC.
“We asked him, why did you run away? And he said he just got tired of her not respecting his boundaries. And she said that he wanted his own life. And his exact word was ‘I was tired of living like a slave,’” Quanell said.
“This young man said that when he initially ran away, he came back two days later and she told him that he had to hide, that he was going to get in trouble and they were going to arrest him for running away and that he had to continue hiding,” according to Quanell.
“I heard horrific things from that young man and I did not want him to see me start shedding tears, but I couldn’t hold back the tears because of the things he was saying to us, the detective and myself,” Quanell said. “No child, no child should ever be treated like that by your own mother.”
Quanell said Farias claimed that he was “hidden in plain sight” and also claimed his mother would take him to work at her security job and force him to do the work she was supposed to do.
Other news outlets have reported allegations of sexual abuse between Farias and his mother based on Quanell’s interviews but investigators were adamant that no statements were made during the investigation regarding sexual abuse, police said during the news conference.
Police said they were going to do more interviews and continue their investigation.