NO CONCLUSION
Furious family slams cops and rejects new Roblox claim two weeks after missing son, 15, fled school and vanished
THE devastated family of a missing 15-year-old boy have begged for cops to retract a statement they fear indicates the investigation into the mystery disappearance could be over.
Thomas Medlin, 15, vanished after leaving school in Long Island, New York on January 9 and was first spotted Grand Central Station in Manhattan later that day.
Jim Medlin told The U.S. Sun his family are angry with cops about the investigation into his son’s disappearanceCredit: Family Handout
Thomas Medlin was seen disembarking a train in Manhattan on January 9Credit: Suffolk County Police Department
Jim Medlin says Thomas was in good spirits the last time he saw himCredit: Suffolk County Police Department
His fretting parents say the teenage Roblox fan may have met someone online who convinced him to travel to Manhattan and became “invisible” by wiping his phone.
Police on Wednesday distanced themselves from pursuing a Roblox grooming situation while revealing security camera footage saw Thomas last walking on the pedestrian pathway of the Manhattan Bridge.
An eerie splash in the East River was captured a few minutes later.
Crucially, they continued, the teenager wasn’t pictured leaving the area.
But angry dad Jim exclusively told The U.S. Sun he visited the exact spot where the authorities are questioning the drop into the water on Wednesday and said that the cops’ avenue of investigation “didn’t add up.”
“The times are not correlating. They say the splash came from the Manhattan side, but if you were running from 6.58pm, you couldn’t make it across the bridge that fast,” he said.
“There is no evidence. There are no pictures of him coming off the bridge, and the camera angles are obscured by fences and elevation changes.”
He also told us there was “no way” he could have slipped in icy conditions and utterly refuted any suggestions of a suicide mission.
“If someone was to hurt themselves, why would he pack a backpack and get on the train?” he asked.
The family are worried the splash revelation may force people to conclude Thomas drowned and want cops to retract the statement which, he claims, was made without the family’s go-ahead.
Jim said he was planning to discuss the issue with cops on Thursday.
Detectives also claimed there was “no indication” of criminal activity despite a horrifying slew of kids being abused and kidnapped by Roblox players which have sparked hundreds of lawsuits.
The U.S. Sun has reported extensively about the sickening trend where unsuspecting kids are lured into meetings with players they believe are a similar age before being routinely sexually and physically abused.
UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
Under-fire Roblox said last weekend they were working with law enforcement, only for Suffolk County cops to distance themselves from any connection between the game and this case.
“Under the issuance of subpoenas and search warrants, an examination so far of multiple social media/online gaming profiles and forensic examination of electronic devices associated with Medlin was conducted,” the police said in a statement.
Roblox insist they are doing everything possible to help find Thomas, claiming a “thorough review” of his activity found no evidence of a predator luring him away.
A spokesperson told The U.S. Sun: “We share everyone’s hope for Thomas Medlin’s safe return and our thoughts are with him and his family.”
The gaming giant—which shares reports of suspected exploitation with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC)—denied any “off-platform” grooming had been detected on their end.
“We conducted a thorough review to support law enforcement’s investigation and found no attempts to direct him to an off-platform communication method or sharing of off-platform contact information, including usernames, phone numbers or other communication methods,” they added.
“We will continue to provide any assistance we can.”
But Jim told The U.S. Sun he has subsequently found three Roblox accounts his family had no idea about.
“They are researching these now,” he added.
Suffolk County police said the footage placed Thomas on the pedestrian walkway of the Manhattan Bridge at about 7:06pm on the day he left Stony Brook School and headed to Manhattan by train.
The last cellphone activity was at 7:09pm – and a minute later a splash was captured in the river.
“Here is the problem,” Jim continued. “ I walked that bridge as fast as I could yesterday; in seven minutes, I hadn’t even reached the water yet—I was still over land. It took another four minutes to finally be over the water. It doesn’t add up.”
Jim says Thomas was in good spirits after a family holiday and showed “no signs” of potentially wanting to harm himself or do anything dangerous.
He fears someone he met online may have been “guiding” him towards a meeting.
“He never left home by himself to take trains to the city; he didn’t even know how. A transit worker actually let him through the turnstile for free because Thomas told him he didn’t have his wallet—which he never even owned,” Jim stressed.
“Everything happened too fast for him to have done this alone.”
Thomas is described as white, about 5 feet 4 inches tall and 130 pounds, last seen wearing a black jacket with red stripes, dark sweatpants with white stripes, a black backpack and glasses.
“He was not distraught at any point in time,” Jim concluded.
“We just came back from upstate New York, everything was smiles and he was in a great mood.
“Even the morning when he left for school, he was listening to music and bouncing around. It seems like somebody was telling him how to become invisible because most of his stuff on his electronics was erased.
“None of this matches up. The investigation isn’t over.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact Suffolk County Police Department Fourth Squad Detectives at 631‑854‑8452 or call 911.
A police statement on Wednesday said Thomas was seen on the Manhattan Bridge before a splash in the water was captured by a security cameraCredit: Getty
Thomas is a big Roblox fan and his parents fear he was one of hundreds of kids who have been groomed while playing the gameCredit: SOPA Images/LightRocket via Gett
