Rudy Farias neighbors claim teen never went missing & visited them often as new questions are raised as boy’s mother insists it’s a question of wrong identity.
The mystery deepens. Neighbors of a missing Houston man who was supposedly found in at a local church eight years after he vanished as a teenager have claimed the man never disappearing.
Rudy Farias, then 17, was reported missing in 2015 and is recovering from cuts and bruises all over his body after being found last week, according to his family.
His mother Janie Santana claimed he had blood in his hair and had been clearly badly abused and beaten.
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‘He used to come in my garage, chill with my cousin, son, and daughter’
But Kisha Ross, who lives on the same street as Rudy’s mother, said she never heard that Rudy was missing, despite being friendly with his family.
‘He used to come in my garage, chill with my cousin, son, and daughter,’ a confused Ross told ABC 7, adding that Rudy liked to hang out in the woods by himself.
Broderick Conley, Ross’ cousin, also said he used to hang out with Rudy regularly – ‘laughing’ and having ‘good times.’
The neighbors, who knew Rudy as as Dolph, short for his full name Rudolph, added that while Rudy was a regular visitor at their home, they hadn’t seen him in the last two weeks.
Another neighbor who asked to remain anonymous told the outlet that Rudy has been living with his mother the whole time.
‘I was just shocked someone over here was missing, and we see him,’ he said.
Confused identity?
In a bid to dispel what the mother claims are issues of confused identity, Rudy’s mother, has claimed neighbors referring to her nephew, not her son.
When the outlet shared pictures of the nephew with the neighbors, they insisted they were not talking about the man in the images.
Rudy’s mother reported him missing eight years ago, claiming the teen never came home after he went to walk his dogs.
The now-25-year-old reunited with his family on June 29 after a Good Samaritan called police to report an unresponsive man slumped outside a church.
Cops said they managed to identify Rudy by the necklace he was wearing, which belonged to his late brother, and called Santana to tell her they had found her son after eight long years.
In a message that detailed his condition, his family wrote: ‘It’s him!!! It’s our Rudy.
The note also mentions that he is in a lot of pain.
It continues: ‘He flinches if you try to touch him or hug him thinking we are going to strike him.
‘He thinks his name is Julio Torres and he is 14 now.’
Farias’ mother said they have tried to speak to him, but he only says a few words and adopts the fetal position.
She said it will be a long healing journey but she is pleased that he has been found alive.
Unanswered questions
A missing flyer from the time of his disappearance revealed that Rudy had been diagnosed with depression, PTSD and anxiety and had likely stopped taking his medication. The flyer said he had also attempted to commit suicide.
His mother said at the time it was possible he was disoriented at the time of his disappearance because he was not taking his medication. She added that he was very wary of strangers.
Rudy’s whereabouts over the last eight years remain unknown.
Also unknown is how the manically depressed boy managed to survive given his ongoing condition.
The 25 year old is scheduled to speak to investigators on Wednesday.
