Missing Jacksonville 6-year-old Amari Christiansen found
Six-year-old Amari Gabriel Christiansen, who went missing Thursday evening, has been found alive and well as of late Friday afternoon.
Jacksonville Police Chief Mike Yaniero said the child was spotted by a neighbor within a block of his home in the Holiday City Mobile Home Park near Northeast Creek Park.
“Basically what happened was he went under the trailer, fell asleep, came out and a neighbor noticed him,” Yaniero said. “They called the police department and we were able to recover him.”
Christiansen told officers he had been hiding under a house, fell asleep and came out because he was hungry, Jacksonville police said in an update.
Yaniero said in a news briefing Friday that Christiansen went to school on Thursday, got off the bus at Holiday City around 4 p.m. and was last seen around 5:45 p.m. Determining what exactly happened during his disappearance will need further investigation.
“The investigation is ongoing to determine Amari’s exact movements over the last 24 hours,” said Jacksonville Police’s Investigative Services Deputy Chief Ashley Weaver in the update.
Christiansen went missing in the Grace Street area of Holiday City at approximately 7 p.m. Thursday, and search efforts quickly ensued. By 1:30 a.m. Friday, an Amber Alert had been issued.
On Friday morning, before the boy was found, Yaniero said officers were treating the case as “a suspicious incident” and “as a possible abduction” due to the uncertainty of the circumstances.
Yaniero said more than 100 officers and public safety professionals were involved in efforts to locate the child, and that many community members had reached out and were willing to offer their time and support in the search as well.
NCIS, the FBI and Marine Corps were among the many different agencies involved in the search.
According to police, the child appears to be in good health. Christiansen resides at Holiday City with his parents, according to Yaniero.
More: Jacksonville police search for missing boy; Amber Alert issued Friday morning
The Daily News spoke to neighbors earlier Friday and learned Amari is known as a friendly little boy.
"He's very energetic," said neighbor Amanda Dorsey. "Like everybody, it was like, 'hey, how are you doing!'"
Another neighbor said her son and Amari used to play with monster trucks together in her yard, just being typical kids.
“He’s a little sweetheart," said neighbor, Celia MacHarg.
A neighbor by the name of Brittney, who wished not to share her last name, said she was out looking for him last night with the whole neighborhood.
"Sweet boy," said Brittney. "Not one that you would think would run away or anything like that. Super sweet boy. He’s just a nice kid all around. Super energetic. Super sweet.”
The Daily News spoke with Amari's mother, but she declined to be interviewed at that time.
Police say the investigation is open and ongoing. If you have information you'd like to share, call the police department at 910-455-4000 or Crime Stoppers at 910-938-3273. Callers to Crime Stoppers may remain anonymous.
Reporter Morgan Starling can be reached at mstarling@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on The Daily News: Amari Christiansen, missing nearly 24 hours, found
