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Man Who Claimed To Be Missing Boy Actually 24-Year-Old With History Of Pretending To Be Others

Officials Say Teen Is Not Missing Illinois Boy Timmothy Pitzen
Source: National Center for Missing or Exploited Children (2)

April 4 2019, Published 9:02 p.m. ET

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Police say a man who claimed to be a missing Illinois boy is actually a 24-year-old with a history of pretending to be other people.

Brian Michael Rini from Medina, Ohio, has a previous criminal record for fraud and making false claims to police.

Authorities on April 4 quickly dispelled hope that Timmothy Pitzen, missing since 2011, had been found, after DNA tests proved the man’s true identity.

“Although we are disappointed that this turned out to be a hoax, we remain diligent in our search for Timmothy, as our missing person's case remains unsolved,” a message from the Aurora, Illinois police department reads.

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It’s not yet clear why Rini claimed to be the missing boy, who would now be 14-years-old, but Newport police have confirmed that they are looking into Rini’s claim of escaping from two kidnappers Wednesday morning.

Rini’s brother, Jonathan, says Brian just got out of jail a month ago after doing 3 years for damages around a house party.

Jonathan claims Brian has a history of pretending to be other people, and posed in the past as his brother.

The FBI says the search for Pitzen will continue.

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