Tennessee authorities forced their way into a Monterey hotel room early Saturday morning to find a kidnapped New Jersey toddler and take his father into custody.
And once he was in custody, authorities said, 27-year-old Tyler Rios led deputies to the body of Yasemin Uyar, the 2-year-old boy’s mother New Jersey authorities said he’d also kidnapped, WTVF reported.
The toddler, Sebatian Rios, was unharmed and reunited with his grandmother, Yasemin Uyar’s mother Karen Uyar.
New Jersey State Police issued an AMBER Alert for Sebastian Rios on Friday after no one dropped him off at day care and his mother failed to show up at work, as CrimeOnline previously reported. The Rahway Police Department conducted a welfare check on Yasemin Uyar’s home but found no one there.
Uyar’s car, a silver 2018 Ford Fiesta, was also missing, and state police included the vehicle on the AMBER Alert.
At about 3 a.m. Saturday, WSMV reported, New Jersey officials contacted the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department and told them they had information indicating Rios might be in the area. Fifteen minutes later, Monterey Police officers and sheriff’s deputies found Uyar’s Fiesta in the parking lot at the Bethel Inn & Suites just off Interstate 40 in Monterey, a small Middle Tennessee town east of Nashville.
After determining Rios was at the hotel, they tried to convince him to surrender, but when he refused, they forced their way in and took him into custody. They also obtained search warrants for the car and the hotel room.
After he was taken into custody, Rios led officials to Uyar’s body in a wooded area off US Highway 70 just inside the Monterey city limits.
Rios is being held in the Putnam County Jail on a felony fugitive charge, awaiting extradition to New Jersey. The Union County Prosecutor’s Office said he’s likely to face murder and kidnapping charges once he’s returned.
Putnam County Sheriff Eddie Farris praised the “professionalism” of his deputies and Monterey police officers in the case.
“I am thankful for the wellbeing and unharmed two-year-old,” he told WTVF. “I would also like to express my sadness regarding the death of Yasemin Uyar and condolences to her family and friends.”
See more coverage of this story from CrimeOnline.
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[Featured image: Yasemin Uyar/Facebook]