Los Angeles police have requested an Amber Alert from CHP for a 6-year-old boy who was taken Wednesday morning from a Venice elementary school by his mother, who does not have custody rights for him.
West Burnett is shown in a photo provided by his father on April 26, 2017. (Credit: KTLA)
The boy was taken from Coeur d'Alene Avenue Elementary School on Coeur d'Alene Avenue about 8 a.m., Los Angeles Police Department Pacific Division officers said on scene.
The child, identified by his father as West Burnett, was allegedly taken by 36-year-old Nisha Burnett Thayer. A police sergeant said investigators don't know what her intentions are but they're hoping for the best.
The boy was dropped off by the father's cousin, who walked him into his classroom, the child's 43-year-old father, William Burnett, told KTLA.
The boy's biological mother followed him into the school and took him from the classroom "without teacher's permission," LAPD Sgt. Bridgette Peterson said. School staff tried unsuccessfully to stop the mother, according to the sergeant.
The campus was open at that time to allow parents to drop their children off in classrooms, she said.
Nisha Burnett Thayer is shown in a photo provided by the boy's aunt.
"She basically walked into the classroom, took the child out during the open-campus time and then left with the child," Peterson said.
The mother fled with the boy in an unknown direction, and now police are asking for help finding him, Peterson said. The department has asked the California Highway Patrol to put out an Amber Alert, Peterson said. A spokesperson at LAPD headquarters said police planned to put out a press release.
There is a restraining order out against Thayer, who is divorced from the child’s father, according to to the boy's aunt. The aunt, Lia Hein, has custodial rights to the boy, and West lives with her, while Burnett has parental rights.
"She just walked right into the classroom and ... took him," Hein said.
She had been seen lurking around the school recently, trying to contact West, and the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services was notified, the aunt said.
"Nisha, bring him back," Hein exclaimed. "You know you're not well."
William Burnett talked to LAPD Sgt. Bridgette Peterson about his son on April 26, 2017. (Credit: KTLA)
Thayer is described as a white woman with brown hair and brown eyes, about 115 pounds and 5 feet tall. She has visible tattoos on both arms. She was driving a gold or champagne-colored 2004 BMW with license plate No. 6WAP644. She has been known to live in her vehicle, Peterson said.
The boy was wearing a black hoodie, blue jeans, blue light-up shoes and a backpack with Minecraft design on it. A photo showed he was fair-complected with dark blond hair and blue eyes.
William Burnett described Thayer as homeless and "very erratic," and Hein said she has mental health problems.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
from KTLA http://ift.tt/2oNt52Q
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