A mother from Brooklyn has repeatedly claimed that her 11-year-old autistic son, Jacob Pritchett, does not exist, despite having his name tattooed on her arm, as reported by the NYPD.
Jacob has been missing since he was last seen at his mother’s NYCHA apartment in Brownsville back in October, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenney.
“We brought the mother in for questioning,” Kenney explained.
Interestingly, she asserts that she is “infertile” and insists that she doesn’t have a child named Jacob, despite the tattoo on her arm featuring his name.
Kenney stated that Jacqueline, 50, has been sent to Rikers for not revealing her son’s whereabouts, although she was released in late December when a judge dismissed the case.
In the early stages of this investigation, a cadaver dog discovered blood stains in the Brownsville apartment, specifically on the refrigerator and a mattress near an outdoor trash can. However, there’s been no sign of Jacob, police officials noted.
Investigators have been quite thorough, searching through waste at the Greenpoint Waste Management Plant and even visiting the High Acre Landfill, further north near Rochester, looking for any clues related to Jacob.
Kenney disclosed that a staggering 2,920,360 pounds of food waste was tested by the NYPD and New York State Police, but sadly, the searches yielded no promising leads.
The last confirmed sighting of Jacob occurred on April 2, when a property manager spotted him. Additionally, there was a moment in early 2025 when Jacob waved from a window while his aunt talked to his mother, according to the chief.
Officials from the city’s Department of Children’s Services informed the NYPD that there is “no record” of Jacob attending school, as relatives suggested he was likely home-schooled.
The ongoing investigation has shifted toward a potential homicide, based on the bloodstains found in the apartment, as confirmed by Kenney.
“We know he exists,” he stated. “It’s just a matter of finding out where he is right now.”
As of Monday, Jacob remains unaccounted for, according to the New York Police Department.
