Scottie Morris: Mystery continues as cops reveal mom found missing teen ‘by chance’ before they arrived
EATON, INDIANA: Scottie Morris was reportedly with his mother when police arrived on scene to take the 14-year-old into the care of Child Protective Services. At this point, it is unclear who made the 911 call for a "welfare check" since the authorities have blocked the call audio's release due to the ongoing investigation.
The middle schooler was found safe on Friday, March 24, just minutes away from his family home in Eaton, Indiana, more than a week afte the 14-year-old went missing. Scottie was reportedly wearing the same clothes he had disappeared in, including a pair of black basketball shorts and a white t-shirt – emblazoned with the words "cheat" and "I'm a liar" among other phrases – that he had apparently been forced to wear as part of a punishment.
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According to The Sun, police scanner audio from Friday night revealed how Scottie's mother, Felicia Morris, was already at the scene when responding officers arrived. The teenager was reportedly found less than half a mile from his family residence near the cross-sections of North Hartford and Harris Street at around 10.30 pm. An unidentified officer was heard in an audio from the scanner, responding to a "welfare check" along Hartford and Harris and confirming "we've got Scottie here" to dispatch. "I've got him with mom," the officer said before adding, "he's still in the same clothes that we had in the description."
911 call mystery
It is unclear at the time of publication who made the 911 call to alert the police to Scottie's presence. John Brooke, the attorney for the town of Eaton, told said that Felicia spotted her son purely by coincidence around the same time officers responded to the scene. "Eaton is a very small town," Brookes said.
He added, "Scottie's mom was picking up his sister from work and saw Scottie standing on a street corner about the same time as the officers saw him and picked him up. The investigation is starting and ongoing as to his whereabouts for the time he was missing. Right now no one in his family is being investigated as they are trying to get an idea where he was during the last few days."
The Delaware County Emergency Communications Center has reportedly declined to release the 911 call audio that preceded Scottie's discovery due to the investigation. A spokesperson for the department said, "I have spoken with the Chief of Police from Eaton and he has advised that we are unable to release this information at this time. This is an ongoing investigation and we are not releasing any further information."
'Safe and loved'
Scottie was rushed to the IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie for a medical checkup immediately after he was found Friday night. He is now in the care of the Delaware County CPS until police conduct a full investigation into his disappearance. Further, on Sunday, Scottie's aunt, Melissa Morris, said that the boy is now "home safe and loved."
In a new update, the Eaton Police department revealed that they had conducted interviews with two unnamed people of interest, who have since been ruled out of their inquiries. "Officers with EPD and the Delaware County Sheriff's Department have been conducting interviews most of the day," the department said in a statement on Sunday, March 26. "There were two individuals brought in for questioning, however, they have since been cleared of involvement with any part of this case. The department of Child Services is assisting Scottie. The family is continuing to cooperate with every aspect of the investigation," they added.