He began making phone calls. Tim hopped out of the back of the Jeep, waved, you know, Love you, Dad, Jim recalls. Jim Pitzen was born and raised here, and it was to Clinton that he retreated after everything happened. "She absolutely adored her son, and he adored her," Anderson said. Timmothy Pitzen went missing seven years ago. When he opened it, he met two men in suits, both wearing grim expressions. Updated: November 8, 2011 James Pitzen, age 72, of rural Shelby, Ohio passed away Monday, June 9, 2014 at The Willows at Willard, Ohio. I was thinking things like, Whos going to pick him up? Since his son vanished, Jim Pitzen has moved from the familys original home in Aurora, Illinois, to Clinton, Iowa. But this is the face that we ask everybody to look at closely, because we know that its one way he can be found.. Even so, Karas mind flashed back to a call she had received from Amy two days earlier. Her fourth marriage now failing, Amy began planning a final act. A few hours later, before Amy Fry-Pitzen drove away with her son Timothy, she was probably at a nearby workshop getting her car fixed up before they left. Dad Jim Pitzen had been down this road before. James Pitzen, Timmothy Pitzen's father. Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Aurora PoliceOn the morning of May 11, 2011, Amy Fry-Pitzen signed her 6-year-old son Timmothy out of his kindergarten class and hit the road. It's now been 10 years since Timmothy Pitzen vanished from Aurora, Illinois at just six years old. Amy's marriage to . Amy even put him on the line briefly with Jims brother. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has assigned a team of investigators to assist with a nationwide search, and local police are working closely with authorities in Rockford, Wisconsin and Iowa, where Pitzen-Fry had many friends and relatives, Ferrelli said. The next day, a maid found Amys body in a nearby motel room, and Timmothy was missing. Rini, a man from Ohio, was found guilty by a federal judge in 2020 of making a false claim, and he was sentenced to serve two years in prison and one year on probation. He was pleasantly surprised, however, when she climbed into the car and acted as if the argument about it had never happened. Timothy suffered a nosebleed earlier in the month while he was riding, according to a family member who later stated that the ride was most likely the cause of the bloodstains. I think I just wanted to see what she had done to herself., The funeral took place the next day at the same church. Please let us know where he's at. Despite this, James Pitzen vowed to support Amy despite her battles, and the two were quickly married. Immediately after she hung up, Amy turned off her phone and drove south along the Rock River to Sterling, Illinois, a small manufacturing and steel town surrounded by farmland, about 80 miles west of Aurora. I took anxiety medicine. Included in Amys note: a message to the motel staff that she was sorry they would have to clean up after her. Email : [emailprotected]. The teen told authorities in Kentucky on Wednesday that he was Pitzen, who disappeared from the Chicago suburb in 2011. His brother claimed that during the call, he could hear Timmothy in the background playing or hanging out., But one part of that relayed phone conversation will ring in James ears for a long while. When Mr. Pitzen went to pick up his son from school, later on, he was taken aback by the fact that he was unaware of his wifes behavior and was surprised by it. The mother had claimed there was an emergency, he was told. The resort is located in the state of Wisconsin. The young man did know certain facts about the disappearance, but he wasnt aware of more private details, like about the family cat and dog. "We are laser-focused on finding (Timothy) alive and bringing him back to his family," Ferrelli said. Can we come in? they said. Of course by now they have been reported missing by James Pitzen. I started drinking too much. The nightmare began on May 11, 2011, which dawned as an otherwise unremarkable day for the family. Indeed, this man was making up his story. "He went on with his life," Anderson said. Her work has also been featured in Smithsonian and shes designed several book covers in her career as a graphic artist. AURORA Ill. (WMTV) - Ten years since to the day since Timmothy Pitzen disappeared, a new age progressed image shows what the boy might look like today as a teenager. On May 11, 2011, six-year-old American boy Timmothy James Pitzen (/ptsn/) was dropped off at school in Aurora by his father James Pitzen. On the day he vanished, Timmothy was picked up at school by his mother shortly after he had just been dropped off by his father. Seven years later, a young teenager emerged on April 3 to say he was Timmothy Pitzen, and that he had been held captive by two individuals for the last seven years. Rini has since apologized for furthering the familys distress. Though they said they had not yet determined whether he was actually the missing boy, several media outlets and even a police report gave the impression that Tim had likely been found. But as more information emerged, Jim grew skeptical. They were inseparable. Adds Kara: They almost spoke their own language., The father was equally thrilled to have a son, and as soon as the boy was old enough, he took him on go-kart rides and delighted in catering to Tims obsession with Matchbox cars. "If someone has him, please turn him in to the police. James tells the show: 'They read the note to me. An examination of her vehicle revealed that it had been parked in a grassy area, possibly near a stream, but close to a highway. The images that unspool in his mind are always the same, but the trigger is as unpredictable as lighting. James Pitzen, 39, said he last saw his son Wednesday morning on his way to kindergarten. A security camera showed Amy entering a food market near Rockford on May 13, but there is no sign of Timmothy with her. James also details how he had insisted on dropping hisson off at Greenman Elementary School before taking his wife to her place of work the day of their disappearance. We are thinking about him, and we love him, and we will do everything to get him back to a good life., Jim Pitzen, Timmothy Pitzens Father: 5 Fast Facts to Know, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Pitzen was six years old at the time. Donnelley's in . Jim Pitzen, Timothys father, and Amys husband filed a complaint against their missing wife and son after nearly 24 hours of trying to contact Amy. She told Jim that afterward shed checked herself into a psychiatric ward for nearly a week and was prescribed medication and counseling. I-Pass records were also reviewed by the police, which revealed that Fry-Pitzen made two trips to the Dixon/Rock Falls/Sterling area during the winter months, both of which her family members cannot explain. The first trip was on February 18, 2011, and the second was on March 20. When Amy did get pregnant, a little more than a year after theyd started dating, they both kind of looked at it as a miracle, a sign that this was something meant to happen, says Kara. A still from surveillance footage of Amy and Timmothy Pitzen that surfaced shortly after the disappearance. But then, on May 11, 2011, Amy pulled Timmothy out of school. Investigators believed this was evidence that Amy had been planning the abduction of her son for months. It was speculated that the couple's marriage was tense and maybe she was taking some time away. Things werent perfect, but she seemed back to normal.. I would have conversations with the detectives, and I would say, You tell me, what do you think? And they would say, I go back and forth. Marshals Service, and other agencies conducted the first of their ground searches, scouring rural roads and parks along the I-88 and I-39 corridors near the Sterling area for clues to Tims whereabouts. 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When James Pitzen, Amy's husband and Timmothy's father, didn't hear back from his wife for nearly 24 hours, he reported the pair missing. ', Speaking to his son, James added: 'Timmothy, I love you. The circus atmosphere made Kara realize how sensational the story had become. But what went wrong, and why didnt Amy answer Jims calls when they were placed? The National Center of Missing & Exploited Children released the picture Tuesday as Timmothys family holds out hope that he may one day be found. It cant be ignored., He added, I forgive, but its going to take a lot to get over this. At 12:30 p.m., she stopped and, over the next hour and a half, made the calls to her family and friends. Investigators were encouraged that neither Tims backpack nor the toys his mother had bought him, including a Hot Wheels starter set and a toy truck, were found in the motela sign they might still be with Tim. Before Amy went back to the hotel, she was observed shopping at the supermarket, where she purchased a notebook, some envelopes, and a pen. Timmothy and I will be fine. Because he never moved from that spot. Pitzen dropped Timothy off at kindergarten at 7:45 a.m. Less than an hour later, Fry-Pitzen picked Timothy up from the school and took him to Brookfield Zoo and the KeyLime Cove Water Park in Gurnee without telling family or friends, police said. I just need some time to figure out and try to think about how to approach this,' she reportedly said. To outsiders, his wife seemed happyaffable and always smiling, attributes that had first attracted Jim. The door had been locked with the security chain, but the maid was able to open it enough to see Amys body. The man who allegedly claimed to be missing child Timmothy Pitzen is now charged . They returned to the shop in the afternoon to pick up the SUV and then drove a little more than an hour north to the KeyLime Cove Water Resort (now the Great Wolf Lodge) in Gurnee. Timmothy Pitzen disappeared seven years ago after his mother, Amy Fry-Pitzen, pulled him out of school one day in May. Fry-Pitzen, who was suffering from depression and going through an unhappy marriage at the time, was found dead from suicide May 14, 2011, inside a motel room in Rockford, Illinois, according to . Come get him,'" he said. 05-11-2021. He left a message. NCMEC spokesperson Angeline Hartmann explained that their age progression photos can help find missing children. But authorities accepted the familys explanation that the blood was likely from a severe nosebleed the boy had in the vehicle not long before he went missing. Amy drove south on I-39, then west on I-88, for about 170 miles. Another 24 hours at least., The next day, two officers showed up at his work. True Crime writer. 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