UPDATE: Rudy Farias, "missing" Houston man, was never actually missing- The story so far
July 11, 2023
Last week’s post focused on “missing man” Rudy Farias, who allegedly disappeared in 2015, when he was just seventeen years old, while out walking his dogs.
(Click HERE<< to read the post)
However, since news of his return sparked media interest, the case has developed with a bizarre twist- Rudy Farias returned home the day after his mother, Janie Santana, reported him missing and his whereabouts have been known all along.
A recent statement issued by Houston Police revealed that over the eight years Farias was allegedly missing, detectives had conducted investigations and provided evidence to prove that Farias was actually accounted for and had been living with his mother the entire time.
Houston police stated that not only have family members of the man confirmed his whereabouts, but the department has also had interactions with Farias over the years. During these interactions with officers, Farias, and his mother, had given incorrect information pertaining to their identities, including fabricated dates of birth, as well as made-up names.
On July 5, 2023, officers from the Houston PD were informed by Farias that he returned home March 8, 2015- the day after he was reported missing. Despite this, Janie Santana insisted that her son was still missing. Friends, family, and those in the neighborhood had seen Rudy Farias with their own eyes, however, when police questioned Santana about this, she claimed they had actually seen her nephew, which was untrue.
Leader of the New Black Panther Nation in Houston, Texas, and activist, Quanell X, has become involved in the Rudy Farias case, with claims that he heard Farias state that he had been drugged by his mother and sexually abused. Quanell X, who has said that he was present when Farias was being interviewed by investigators, said: "This young man said when he initially ran away he came back 2 days later she told him that he had to hide, and he was going to get in trouble, and they were going to arrest him for running away. So, she hid him out for a while and brought him back to the house and hid him in the home. Initially whenever the investigators would come, she would hide him in the house."
Quanell X said that Farias was insisting he did not want his mother to go to prison or get in trouble, and when asked why he ran away, Farias allegedly said that he was "tired of her not respecting his boundaries," and that he was "tired of living as a slave." Quanell X alleges very disturbing allegations purportedly revealed by Farias, who allegedly said that he was made to work his mother’s job for her and that he was, disturbingly, made to share a bed with his mother where he was "forced to play daddy" and "be her husband."
Those following the story remain confused between the Houston PD’s statement, wherein they said Farias suffered no abuse, and Quanell X’s statement where he revealed the exact opposite.
Quanell X said that Farias was seemingly switching between a childlike state and that of a mature man during questioning.
It took investigators one week to interview Farias after he was “found” unresponsive near a church. They stated that the case was not urgent and that Farias rejected transport to the hospital He was deemed safe and allowed to return home. It was Janie Santana that later brought the young man to hospital.
The Houston PD said there were no reports of sexual abuse, but when asked by reporters if there had been any conversations regarding sexual abuse they said that they “didn’t release any type of information related to sexual assaults, that’s just state law,” and “couldn’t comment on that.”
When asked by reporters if Rudy was a victim or not, they declined to answer and stated that the investigation was still ongoing and was still in the early stages, with developments happening daily. They have declined to comment on questions of the involvement of mental illness in the case.
They also declined to put forward any comment when asked about the potential kidnapping of Rudy Farias and if he had been taken to Mexico at any point during the eight years his mother had claimed he was missing; and said that they hold the integrity of the case over revealing information to the public at this time.
Rudy is, at the time of writing, in the company of his mother. According to police he is with her by choice.
Falsely reporting someone missing is a class d misdemeanour in Houston, however, no charges have been made against anyone involved in the case at this time. Some reports state that Santana allegedly created a GoFundMe page to collect donations back in 2015 when Farias initially “disappeared,” from which she purportedly made around over $2000.
More than a year after the missing person report was filed, a news segment by KHOU 11 on Missing Childrens day featured Santana talking about her "missing" son. A reporter states: "She'll share her fears but not her face," and Santana is shown sitting in the shadows, her face obscured. "He hasn't checked his Facebook, he hasn't checked his email," she says. "He has such a huge heart; he loves with all his heart. That's why we know he wouldn't just up and go on his own. That's not him." It's unclear where the information came from, but the reporter states that "detectives have warned family members that he may have been abducted and sold for human drug trafficking. That's why she's hiding her face."
Police have reiterated that Rudy Farias is an adult, and was an adult in the state of Texas when he went missing. Although reporters argued that, if the allegations of abuse are true, there could have been “brainwashing” involved, police have said, as Farias is legally an adult and going missing isn’t a crime, there isn’t much they can do at this point in the investigation.
