‘He loved me and protected me’: son gives emotional statement after dad sentenced for abducting him

An 18-year-old man gave a heart-wrenching speech in an Ohio court about his love and admiration for his dad – even though his father abducted him nearly 14 years ago.

Bobby Hernandez kidnapped his son, Julian, in 2002 when the boy was five.

“I think that [my dad has] done a lot of good in our time here in Cleveland. He’s raised me well in my opinion, a lot better than any other parent I’ve seen,” Hernandez told the court. “He pushed me far in school and he’s the reason why I get some of the best grades in school and why I’m going to college.”

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "I think that [my dad has] done a lot of good in our time here in Cleveland. He's raised me well in my opinion, a lot better than any other parent I've seen," Hernandez told the court. "He pushed me far in school and he's the reason why I get some of the best grades in school and why I'm going to college."

The judge sentenced Bobby Hernandez, 53, to four years in prison and five years’ supervision following his release.

WATCH: Judge sentences father who kidnapped son over a decade ago to 4 years in jail

1:36 Judge sentences father who kidnapped son over a decade ago to 4 years in jail

In 2002, Bobby Hernandez took Julian from the Alabama home that he shared with his girlfriend, who is Julian’s mother. Bobby Hernandez created new identities for the two of them in Cleveland where they moved after leaving Alabama. According to CBS News, Bobby Hernandez had threatened to kidnap their son if she ever tried to end their relationship.

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In 2015, Bobby Hernandez was arrested after Julian Hernandez tried to apply for college but had issues with his social security number. A school counselor then discovered Julian Hernandez was listed as missing on the site, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

According to NCMEC’s website, it’s difficult to track the number of children abducted a year. However, the organization wrote that in 2015 the FBI listed 460,699 reported entries for missing children.

It is not known how many of those were family-related abductions.

Even so, Julian Hernandez said all he ever knew was his dad and he still wants his father in his life.

“The time I spent with him is the only time I’ve ever truly felt at home and at peace because of how much hard work he put into everything. And yes, growing up without my mother was painful at times, but taking my father away from me now just increases the pain from that – taking him from me now is just doing the same all over again,” said Julian Hernandez.

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "The time I spent with him is the only time I've ever truly felt at home and at peace because of how much hard work he put into everything. And yes, growing up without my mother was painful at times, but taking my father away from me now just increases the pain from that - taking him from me now is just doing the same all over again," said Julian Hernandez.

The lawyer for Julian Hernandez’s mother, Gloria Allred, spoke on the woman’s behalf on Wednesday during the sentencing of her ex-boyfriend.

“When I lost my sweet, little boy … it was the worst day of my life.  Every parent’s worst nightmare is having to describe to police what their child was wearing the last time that they were seen,” read Allred in court.  “I didn’t know if [Julian] was gone forever … With every passing hour it became clearer that Julian was not coming home.”

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "When I lost my sweet, little boy … it was the worst day of my life.  Every parent's worst nightmare is having to describe to police what their child was wearing the last time that they were seen," read Allred in court.  "I didn't know if [Julian] was gone forever … With every passing hour it became clearer that Julian was not coming home."

Allred went on to read from the statement that Julian’s mother contemplated suicide during her “darkest moments.”

WATCH: ‘It was the worst day of my life’: lawyer reads statement from mother of abducted boy

1:38 ‘It was the worst day of my life’: lawyer reads statement from mother of abducted boy

“As the weeks went by I felt completely and utterly alone. I stopped sleeping and eating … I began to feel I couldn’t go on without my little boy … I wanted to die,” Allred continued.

Julian Hernandez has not spoken to his father since December due to a no-contact order issued by the judge.

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