Lacking Boy Featured on Unsolved Mysteries Discovered Seven Years After Disappearance

Abdul Aziz Khan was seven when he, his non-custodial mom Rabia Khalid and her husband — who isn’t the boy’s father — “fell off the map” in November 2017, amid Khalid’s custody dispute together with her ex.

Khalid was charged with felony kidnapping and a warrant was issued for her arrest on the time, however managed to evade seize till this week.

On Wednesday, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Workplace, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Kenner (Louisiana) Police Division, and the Nationwide Middle for Lacking & Exploited Youngsters introduced a now-14-year-old Aziz has been discovered, whereas each Khalid and her husband, Eliot Bourgeois, have been arrested.

The 2 are dealing with costs of second diploma kidnapping, forgery, identification theft, offering false info to authorities and trespassing. Bond for each has been set at a million {dollars}.

In keeping with the Sheriff’s Division, deputies responded to a trespass name at a house listed on the market in Highlands Ranch, CO on February 23, 2025, anticipating to research a housebreaking in progress.

After they arrived on the scene, two youngsters have been present in a parked car within the driveway. Khalid and Bourgeois then walked out of the house, “claiming to be related to a realtor,” stated authorities.

“Their story started to unravel because the deputies and dispatchers labored for 4 hours to confirm their identities,” stated the Sheriff, who recognized Khalid utilizing her fingerprints and located she had an energetic kidnapping warrant.

“Our deputies ended up separating the 2 adults and attempting to get interviews with them to determine what precisely was occurring,” Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly instructed ABC Information, including the deputies “felt like one thing was up.”

They then recognized one of many two youngsters, a 14-year-old boy, as Aziz, who had allegedly been kidnapped in 2017.

Whereas the 2 suspects are at the moment being held at Douglas County Jail, the kids have been taken into protecting custody. Authorities are working to reunite Aziz together with his father; Weekly additionally stated it appeared the boy had been “coached” on what to say if approached by police and will not have recognized he had allegedly been kidnapped.

As for the way they evaded seize, Weekly stated, “We consider that they’ve been all around the nation.”

In an announcement, the household of Abdul Aziz Khan stated, “We’re overwhelmed with pleasure that Aziz has lastly been discovered. We wish to thank everybody for his or her assist over the past seven years. We particularly wish to acknowledge the Douglas County Sheriff’s Workplace for his or her distinctive work in fixing this case. Now, as we navigate the subsequent steps, we ask for privateness in order that we will transfer ahead as a household and heal collectively.”

Added Weekly: “Our deputies responded to what initially appeared like a routine trespass name, however by way of sharp consideration to element and tenacity, they uncovered the reality. Their skill to acknowledge the discrepancies within the suspects’ story and to observe the leads, even when the scenario appeared unclear, finally led to the protected restoration of a kid who had been lacking for seven lengthy years.”

“I could not be prouder of the work accomplished by our workforce; this case highlights the dedication of our officers to hunt justice and defend probably the most susceptible,” he added. “It is a reminder of the unbelievable distinction our work makes within the lives of these we serve.”

Of their assertion, U.S. Marshal Enix Smith III for the Japanese District of Louisiana particularly praised Netflix’s Unsolved Mysteries “for guiding the general public’s consideration to this matter” — whereas The Nationwide Middle for Lacking & Exploited Youngsters, which advocated onerous for press consideration on Aziz’s case, added, “we knew that nationwide media protection was essential.”