The investigation into the abduction of seven-year-old Bryan Williamson is ongoing as authorities from various local law enforcement agencies, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and the FBI pool resources.
On Thursday, April 21, a press conference was held at the Madison County Emergency Management Center to update the public about the current state of the investigation.
“Bryan is a courageous young man and he has been able to provide us [with] several details about his abduction,” said FDLE Special Agent Mark Perez.
On Sunday evening, Williamson was walking home from visiting his cousin’s home in Northeast Gibson Trailer Parkway when a male, who was described as driving a dark, possibly black, four-door sedan, abducted him.
After a worrisome 12 hours, Williamson was discovered in Jacksonville after he knocked on the front door of a home where his kidnapper had dropped him off.
While Bryan is now reunited with his parents and safe, the ordeal is far from over.
“I don’t know if Williamson or his parents will ever feel safe until his captor has been caught,” said Shawn Schreiber, Williamson’s cousin, at the April 21 press conference.
The FBI has received many phone tips over the past 72 hours, but nothing has lead to the discovery of the man who was behind the terror that the little boy’s family were forced to endure and still endure.
“A dangerous person, a child abductor, is out there somewhere,” said Perez.
Schreiber confirmed that the whole attitude of the trailer park has changed. When he used to come home from work, the park was filled with children playing and they would run up to greet him. Since the incident, they don’t do that anymore. “Everyone is scared,” said Schreiber.
Interviewing a child who has been involved in an event as frightening and traumatic as the one Williamson was forced to endure is a delicate process, but through careful discussion steps, the FDLE has discovered that Williamson’s abductor has dark skin and is possibly Hispanic or African American. There is no indication that the man was a Madison local or that he was working with others. There is no further description yet to be provided.
Law enforcement is combing the areas of North Florida between Madison and Jacksonville and is also searching southern Georgia for any indication of the identity of the child abductor.
FDLE and the FBI are still asking that if anyone has any information or security footage that could lead to the discovery of the identity of the criminal, that they call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). On top of that, a $50,000 reward has been issued to any person who provides information that leads to the discovery and arrest of the man who kidnapped Williamson.
If anyone has any security footage that they believe may contain footage of the dark four-door sedan that contained Williamson and his abductor, FBI Special Agent in Charge Michelle Klempt asks that they be contacted. “We will come to you and pick up the footage,” said Klempt.
Williamson’s family has refused to release the information of what has been revealed to them by Williamson regarding what took place in the 12 hours of his abduction and the FDLE and FBI ask that the press and public give the family their privacy as these matters continue to be ongoing.