Mystery deepens on Mo. boy’s 4-year absence

[DruRocks]

Link

This whole thing is eerie.

[KLN]

I read about all of this yesterday. It's all very strange.

Maybe he had Stockholm Syndrome... y'know. That's when people who have been kidnapped end up sympathizing and even helping their kidnappers for some reason.

[Pest Spray]

Sounds like a case of excessive brainwashing and Stockholm syndrome to me. But then, I'm not an expert, just someone who watched Discovery Channel for fun.

[Marilyn_M]

Its not odd at all for someone who has been kidnapped not to run. People are trying to make it seem like it would be so simple when in fact its the exact opposite. He was probably told if he left that he would get killed, or his family would be killed or that his family didn't love him anymore. What needs to happen is for the media to get out of his face so he can get on the road path to recovery.

[DruRocks]

^That's true, but there was ample opportunity where he could have sent messages and escaped without anybody getting hurt.

[Rhonda37138]

Great post, Marilyn M! ICAM that the poor child has been through so much without the press hounding him for a hot story. It is disgusting how reporters get in peoples' faces when they are experiencing pain and fear!

[Marilyn_M]

But its just not that easy as it sounds. We don't know what kind of hell he put that boy through. Its just not as easy as calling the police or running away. It just doesn't work that way. That kind of psychological manipulation can do such damage.

[Sweet_VeeVee24]

Well, when Steven (forgot his last name, but a movie was based on him) was kidnapped, he too hada many opportunities to escape, but he didn't...It doesn't necessarily mean that he liked staying with his captor...sometimes it could be simply out of fear...I hope folks don't take all of this and just run with it and deem that he should have "known" to run.

[Drew]

very true.

He could have easily posted "I'm being held at ..." instead of "how long are you going to look for your son?" Or send a PM to the forum admins if he was afraid Devlin would see the posting on the site.

[Marilyn_M]

You said it all. If it was that simple, it would have happened but something was going on there, something that we don't know about. Until we have been in the position that he was in, I don't think its fair to say that he should have ran.

[Tishy]

I saw a movie based on Steven (I think his last name was Schneider) and read a book about him. Sadly, he was killed a couple years after he escaped. He escaped when his kidnapper brought another boy to the house and Steven was afraid he would molest him as the kidnapper had molested him.

I am in no means an expert on this, but it does sound like Stockholm Syndrome. We don't know what was being done to this boy and the psychological abuse he was facing. To just say, hey, send a PM to someone. What if he sent one to someone and they didn't believe him. He very well could have been thinking no one would believe him and if the kidnapper found out, he would be killed.

OT: regarding the Steven story from a while back, remember the Yellowstone killings a few years back where a couple people were killed in Yellowstone National Park? I think it was 2 women hikers. Steven's brother Cary was convicted of the killings.

[daysfan]

I heard this on the news and even though if you don't put your brain to it it sounds like it's really strange I agree with what some are saying like he could have bene in fear. We don't know what happened to him while he was there in that apartment, and he could have been threateneed by Devlin. The news made it sound so confusing, but it could be simple.

Sure, the boy was out alot but mabye he was afraid of what Devlin would do if he went back to his home.....he couldv'e though that if Devlin found him he would sneak in one night and kill him and possibly his own family. Who knows!

The child was young when he was kidnapped, and depending on how he thought his kidnapper could have drilled it into his head that if he escapes he WILL find him. Then he went for four years thinking of that and constantly living in fear....you never know.