Witness spots abducted 7-year-old boy through car window in Columbus

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A man accused of abducting a boy who was found in a car in northeast Columbus, was arrested while trying to escape police Sunday night.

According to court documents, Columbus police were called to the Devonshire neighborhood at 10:41 p.m. Sunday on reports of a missing seven-year-old boy. The child’s mother had come to a residence there to pick up her son from a birthday party. The boy’s coat and shoes were by the door, but they could not find him in the home.

Witnesses who helped look for the boy reportedly approached a car parked across the street and shined a light in the windows. They told police they saw the boy, partially clothed, sitting with a man in the front seat.

Police said 34-year-old Elvis Wembengeno tried to start the car and pull away, but the witness reached across the passenger seat and pulled the keys out, then ran around to the driver’s side of the car to block Wembengeno from escaping.

Wembengeno, who reportedly told police that he went to his car and the boy followed him from the party, was arrested on charges of abduction and issued a $250,000 bond by a Franklin County municipal judge Tuesday. He is next scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 1.