Found! Cops rescue 15-year-old student from her Tennessee teacher 'kidnapper' at a remote California cabin - '2,500 mile
- 7 years ago
Former Tennessee teacher Tad Cummins was arrested this morning near a remote commune in northern California and 15-year-old Elizabeth Thomas, whom he was alleged to have kidnapped, was found unharmed nearly 2,500 miles from home after an intense five-week search.
At a press conference held Thursday afternoon, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) spokesperson Josh DeVine recounted how a tip from a resident led to Cummins' capture and Thomas' recovery.
According to the official, at around 11pm on Wednesday, TBI got a call from a man saying he may have encountered the wanted pair.
The man said that the two of them were believed to have taken up residence in a cabin in Cecilville, California - a very isolated and rural area near the Oregon border - within the last week and a half.
TBI then contacted the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office and learned that investigators there had received the same tip from the same person who contacted the Tennessee agency.
THE COUPLE'S FLIGHT FROM JUSTICE
January 23: Tad Cummins is spotted kissing Elizabeth Thomas, his student at Culleoka High School, by another student. He denies the claim, saying that they are friends; she is taken out of his classes
February 3: Cummins is reprimanded by the school principal after Elizabeth is found to have entered his classroom for around 30 minues
February 6: Cummins is suspended
c. March 9: Cummins takes out a $4,500 loan on his car.
March 10: Cummins makes the last in a series of impromptu appearances at Elizabeth's place of work
March 12: Cummins buys hair dye from Walmart in Columbia, TN
March 13, 7:45am: Thomas is dropped off at Shoney's in Columbia by a friend
March 13, 8am: Cummins is seen pumping gas in Columbia
March 13, noon: Cummins and Elizabeth are seen together in Decatur, AL, around 70 miles from Columbia. He is fired from his job this same day
March 15: Cummins and Thomas are seen buying food at a Walmart. They are sporting dyed hair. This is their last sighting for more than a month
March 30: Tad Cummins' wife of 31 years, Jill, files for divorce
April 19: The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) is contacted by a man who says he has seen the pair in Cecilville, California. Police converge on a remote cabin, arrest Cummins and confirm that Elizabeth is safe
At a press conference held Thursday afternoon, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) spokesperson Josh DeVine recounted how a tip from a resident led to Cummins' capture and Thomas' recovery.
According to the official, at around 11pm on Wednesday, TBI got a call from a man saying he may have encountered the wanted pair.
The man said that the two of them were believed to have taken up residence in a cabin in Cecilville, California - a very isolated and rural area near the Oregon border - within the last week and a half.
TBI then contacted the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office and learned that investigators there had received the same tip from the same person who contacted the Tennessee agency.
THE COUPLE'S FLIGHT FROM JUSTICE
January 23: Tad Cummins is spotted kissing Elizabeth Thomas, his student at Culleoka High School, by another student. He denies the claim, saying that they are friends; she is taken out of his classes
February 3: Cummins is reprimanded by the school principal after Elizabeth is found to have entered his classroom for around 30 minues
February 6: Cummins is suspended
c. March 9: Cummins takes out a $4,500 loan on his car.
March 10: Cummins makes the last in a series of impromptu appearances at Elizabeth's place of work
March 12: Cummins buys hair dye from Walmart in Columbia, TN
March 13, 7:45am: Thomas is dropped off at Shoney's in Columbia by a friend
March 13, 8am: Cummins is seen pumping gas in Columbia
March 13, noon: Cummins and Elizabeth are seen together in Decatur, AL, around 70 miles from Columbia. He is fired from his job this same day
March 15: Cummins and Thomas are seen buying food at a Walmart. They are sporting dyed hair. This is their last sighting for more than a month
March 30: Tad Cummins' wife of 31 years, Jill, files for divorce
April 19: The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) is contacted by a man who says he has seen the pair in Cecilville, California. Police converge on a remote cabin, arrest Cummins and confirm that Elizabeth is safe