Boy kidnapped by mother for 7 years found in Colorado: Police

Yahoo

05-03-2025

A 14-year-old boy who had been missing for the past seven years was found in late February in Colorado, the Douglas County Sheriff's Department announced on Wednesday.
The seven-year kidnapping case, which was featured in Netflix's "Unsolved Mysteries," finally came to an end on Feb. 23 when Abdul Aziz Khan was found after being missing since Nov. 17, 2017, police said.
Police said they responded to a call from a homeowner in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, for a possible burglary or trespassing at approximately 3:37 p.m. on Feb. 23. This home was for sale, but the owner saw via surveillance cameras two people entering through the back of the residence.
When two deputies arrived on the scene, they discovered a vehicle parked in the driveway with two children inside the car. Two adults, one man and one woman, came out of the house and identified themselves as "associates to the realtor," Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly told ABC News.
Deputies continued to ask questions because "they felt like something was up," Weekly said.
The man gave deputies a driver's license that belonged to a deceased person and the woman said she "never had any type of ID," which concerned police, Weekly said.
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A quick scan of fingerprints revealed the woman to be 40-year-old Rabia Khalid, the missing boy's mother, who already had a kidnapping warrant issued for her arrest.
"Once Rabia was identified, we realized we had a possible kidnapping case here," Weekly said. "Our deputies ended up separating the two adults and trying to get interviews with them to figure out what exactly was going on."
The other adult was identified as 42-year-old Elliot Blake Bourgeois, who is Khalid's husband, but not the boy's father. Both Khalid and Bourgeois were arrested and charged with second degree kidnapping, forgery, identity theft, providing false information to authorities and trespassing, the sheriff's department said.
Both children were taken into protective custody, and the older one was identified as Abdul, police said. The name of the younger child is not being released at this time. Decisions about where the children will be placed will be determined by the court, police said.
"The deputies got them food, they watched 'Blue's Clues' at one of the neighbor's houses to try and keep the kids comfortable and calm while we conducted this investigation," Weekly said.
Weekly told ABC News he is "extremely proud" of his staff for bringing a resolution to this yearslong kidnapping case.
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"Lord knows over the last seven years how many law enforcement contacts these two potentially would have had," Weekly said. "For my deputies to be able to solve this mystery, I am pretty proud of the work they have done."
The boy's family released a statement on Wednesday, applauding the work of the Douglas County Sheriff's Department.
"We're overwhelmed with joy that Aziz has finally been found," his family said in a statement. "We want to thank everyone for their support over the last seven years. Now, as we navigate the next steps, we ask for privacy so that we can move forward as a family and heal together."
Rabia Khalid and the boy's father, Abdul Khan, separated in 2014 and had been dealing with years of custody disputes, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
Khalid moved from New Orleans to Atlanta with her son for a new job shortly before the kidnapping, making it more challenging for the boy's father to see his son.
Then on Nov. 17, 2017, the mother did not show up for a custody hearing in Atlanta, and she and the boy were not seen until this year.
ABC News reached out to the public defenders listed for Rabia Khalid and Bourgeois, but has not heard back.
Boy kidnapped by mother for 7 years found in Colorado: Police originally appeared on abcnews.go.com