Investigator: Questions raised from start of Rudy Farias search
- Rudy Farias was reported found after supposedly being missing for 8 years
- An investigator said his mother's statements raised questions early on
- Santana had claimed her son had been located before with no proof
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(NewsNation) — A private investigator who worked on the case of Rudy Farias, who was reported missing in 2015, said there were questions about the case early on.
Brenda Paradise volunteered for an organization that worked to help find Farias, whose mother, Janie Satnana, said he vanished in 2015 when he was still a teenager. After Farias was supposedly found, neighbors and friends came forward to say he had never been missing and they had seen him at home and around the neighborhood, though Santana claimed he was her nephew.
Paradise said Santana gave volunteers searching for Farias conflicting information, including the year Farias was born. Paradise claims Farias was actually 18 when he was reported missing, as opposed to 17, which was the age Santana gave authorities.
Paradise raised questions about when Farias was found outside a church, including about how Santana arrived at the scene before authorities and why she turned away an ambulance. Paradise said it wasn’t the first time Santana claimed her son had been located.
“The picture that she showed of him in the hospital looked very much like when she said he was in the hospital back in 2012,” Paradise said.
Paradise also recalled a previous instance where Santana claimed she needed money to ransom Farias from Mexico, but only provided unclear photos of the person who was purportedly her son.
An activist in Houston also came forward claiming Farias said he was held captive by Santana and was being sexually abused by her. Police have not confirmed those allegations but said they are actively investigating what happened during the eight years Santana claimed Farias was missing.
Paradise said she fears Farias may have been a victim of Munchausen-by-Proxy syndrome, a condition where a caregiver falsely claims to be caring for a dependent with a serious illness. In some cases, the caregiver may even deliberately cause injury to the victim to make it appear as though they are ill.
Paradise said friends told investigators Farias did not have cancer or asthma, both conditions Santana claimed he suffered from.
According to Paradise, she lost touch with Santana after she objected to the questions Paradise was asking.
