A 17-year-old Florida teen who had been missing since a little more than a week ago has been reunited with her family after she was found in New York with her 27-year-old soccer coach.
Rian Rodriguez is being held on a charge from Florida known as interference with child custody, reports The Post-Standard in Syracuse, N.Y. He will have a hearing Monday where it will be determined if he is extradited.
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Rodriguez and Caitlyn Frisina were stopped in New York on Friday afternoon by a state police officer. Authorities said she apparently sneaked out of her bedroom window and was missing since Nov. 25.
According to CBS 47/FOX 30 in Jacksonville, Fla., however, court records show a friend of the teen had told her parents Frisina said the 27-year-old wanted to leave the country with her, but she was afraid to do so. ABC News reports the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office said Rodriguez had family in Canada and possibly Pennsylvania.
Police said Friday evening that the pair had been found North Syracuse, where Rodriguez was known to have spent summers.
“He spent two summers up here. His comment to us was ‘just like Florida there’s a lot of friendly people here,’ and he felt Syracuse was a lot like Florida and he could find some time to spend here,” said New York State Trooper Jack Keller.
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Frisina was detained until she reunited with her parents Saturday in the Syracuse area.
Her mother, Scarlet, told reporters Saturday afternoon they were very happy to have their daughter back.
“We had a very beautiful, wonderful, very emotional reunion with her a little while ago and we are so thankful to have her back,” Scarlet said, as Frisina stood nearby with her father.
“We are just thrilled to death to be together again. We’re looking forward to a lot more time together and being able to get back home and move forward as a family.”
Ward Frisina, Caitlyn’s father, echoed Scarlet’s thoughts, his voice breaking when asked how he was doing.
“There’s still people out there that try to abuse the system we put in place to protect people, and it may make me a little more cautious when I’m trusting people but we have to love and cherish people and you have to let people in your life sometimes,” he said.
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Law enforcement had been tracking Rodriguez through an ATM withdrawal in St. Mary’s Georgia, and by surveillance cameras at South Carolina and North Carolina convenience stores.
Officials at Fort White High School have suspended Rodriguez, who coached the boys soccer team at the north Florida school. According to an online roster, published by Next College Student Athlete, Frisina played soccer at the school.
It wasn’t immediately clear if Rodriguez has a lawyer.
—With files from The Associated Press
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