5-year-old Florida boy missing out of Lake County found safe

TAVARES, Fla. — A 5-year-old boy who went missing out of Lake County on Sunday was found safe, officials said.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) issued a Florida AMBER Alert for Jace Saunders early Monday morning around 1 a.m. He was last seen in the 1000 block of Wells Avenue in Tavares before disappearing.

Officials added that Saunders was potentially in the company of his 50-year-old grandmother, Kelly Day-Dasilva. The FDLE reported that he was found safe around 9:45 a.m. on Monday, and the Tavares Police Department later confirmed that Day-Dasilva turned herself and Saunders in to a neighboring police department.

Tavares Police said Saunders is semi-verbal and has autism. Officers said he is supposed to be in the custody of the State of Florida but believe his family took him during a Department of Children and Families (DCF) investigation. He is now being transferred to DCF.

Police arrested Saunders’ mother and father for interference of child custody. Day-Dasilva is being brought to the Tavares police station to be questioned.