1. Cummins & Thomas Were Located In a Remote Cabin in Cecilville, California
Officials with the TBI confirmed that they followed-up on a tip late in the evening on April 19 that said Cummins and Thomas may be in Cecilville, California, an unincorporated town in the Six Rivers National Forest.
The tipster, later identified as cabin caretaker Griffin Barry, called the agency’s tipline at about 11 p.m. on April 19 indicating that Cummins and Thomas may have moved into a small cabin in the area within the past last week.
Barry said that he let the couple, who went by the names John and Joanna, stay at an unfinished cabin in exchange for work. He eventually realized who the two were when one of his neighbors showed him a picture of Thomas’ missing person poster.
Barry told KRCR that Cummins said he was 44-years-old and Thomas was 22, noting that he had suffered a house fire, lost his job and only had $10 left to his name. He said that Thomas didn’t speak much; Cummins did most of the speaking.
Barry said that he worked a full day with Cummins doing hard labor and gave him $40 to fill up his car with gas before noticing it was him.
After Barry’s tip, the TBI contacted the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Department who said they received the same information. Siskiyou County Sheriffs deputies traveled about two hours to the remote area, where there is no cell phone service, and located Cummins’ Nissan Rogue with no license plates. They confirmed it was his car through its vehicle identification number.
Officials surveyed the car for a few hours into the morning of April 20 and got assistance from Barry to get Cummins out of the cabin at around 4 a.m.
“I was driving by trying to flush him out,” Barry told KRCR. “(Sheriff’s deputies) were like, ‘honk the horn!’ I’m glad I got to help.”
Cummins came out and was into custody by police without incident. They said that Thomas appeared to be in good condition with no injuries.
Shortly after Thomas was recovered safely, her family said it was “the best day (they) could have ever imagined.”
The Thomas family appeared on the show Good Morning America on April 21, saying that while Thomas isn’t home yet, she is expected to be back later on. They added that Thomas may have mental problems as a result of the abduction, including being “brainwashed.
Thomas’ grandmother, who wished to remain unidentified, told PEOPLE that the Thomas’ were overcome with emotion upon receiving the good news.
In the exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Thomas’ older sister Kat Bozeman said that while Elizabeth looks healthy physcially, her mental state is unknown.
Maury County Public Schools, where Cummins was employed and Thomas attended school, issued a statement after news of Thomas being located was announced. It said that now that she has been found safe, the school district and surrounding community can “begin healing.”
Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 04/21/2017 05:35PM by Fox News.