A Child Is Missing Alert

Rescuers recover lost childSix-year-old reported missing from Bluewater Park found after thorough search. by Katie Duffey

Managing EditorA thirsty child hunting for a drink resulted in a full-scale search involving six local agencies and two rattled parents Monday evening at Bluewater Park.Bobby Stevens Jr., 6, was fishing at the park with his father and sister when sometime after 6 p.m. he wandered away from the beach. "His father said he left because he was thirsty," said Monticello Police Officer Tony Stroup on the scene, after Stevens was recovered by police.Receiving the report of a lost child, the Monticello Police Department rallied local responders in search of Stevens. Calling in the dive team from the Monticello Fire Department - who began to sweep the waters at Bluewater as a precaution - Monticello Police Chief Curt Blount said that officers were hard at work canvassing the area, and that a phone call was placed to Florida-based agency

A Child is Missing.

Working hand and hand with local law enforcement agencies, ACIM enters pertinent information provided regarding the lost child, and phone calls are placed to homes neighboring the location the child was last seen."If we believe a case is not going to be an Amber Alert - if the child has simply walked away - the decision is made to call (A Child is Missing)," said Blount. "This is the first time in our area that we've really used this system. Tonight you can see that it really works."As responders were scouring the area for Stevens, Corner Cupboard employee Michelle Rogers unknowingly stood face to face with the object of their search. According to Rogers, Stevens walked into her Main Street establishment in search of his drink."He came in and he asked for a Bug Juice. He wanted one for him and one for his sister," said Rogers. "I asked him if he had any money, and he said that he didn't have any pockets so he didn't have any money with him."Rogers recounted that Stevens, who repeatedly asserted that his father was out in the car with his sister, eventually left the store - crossing the busy street without looking for traffic, and headed westbound."I knew right away in my gut that something wasn't right with him ... About an hour after he left the store I saw him again walking across the street," said Rogers, who at around 7:30 p.m. phoned the police. "My husband had come in, and I told him that that I felt like I should call the police. When I dialed 911 they said they were looking for a missing little boy."Able to provide dispatchers with an accurate description of Stevens, responders eventually located the boy on South Illinois Street. Rogers, who said a neighboring resident called the shop to report having received a phone call from ACIM officials, was relieved to have made the call."I'm really glad that I called the police and that he was OK when they found him," said Rogers. "He's a lucky little boy."Stevens' mother Mary, a Monticello native that was visiting with family downtown when she received the call regarding her son, agreed."This whole thing just really surprises me, because he never leaves our side when we're out anywhere," said Mary Stevens, who was thankful for the MPD's service. "I'm really glad they made that call (to ACIM)." Responding along with Monticello Police and Fire Departments was the Department of Natural Resources, Indiana State Police, White County Emergency Management Agency and Indiana Excise Police.

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