Missing Mesa teen mom found, in custody; baby OK
Oct 2, 2017, 5:47 PM | Updated: Oct 3, 2017, 12:45 pm
(Facebook/Missing Help Find Baby William Jones-Gouchenour and Madeline Jones)
(Facebook/Missing Help Find Baby William Jones-Gouchenour and Madeline Jones)
PHOENIX — A teenage girl from Mesa and her infant son who went missing in June have been located and the girl was in custody, police said.
Madeline Jones, 19, and her 1-year-old son, William Jones-Gouchenour, were found on Monday in Ramona, California, the Mesa Police Department said.
“Great news! The Mesa police just called, they found Maddie and William,” said Madeline’s ex-husband, Jacob Gouchenour, said in a Facebook video. “Maddie’s in custody, William’s with CPS, he’s well and safe.”
“We’re on our way to pick him up. He’s been found, he’s safe and he’s coming home soon,” he added. “So thank you so much for all of your support and for [the] awareness — that’s what helped [police] find them.”
Steven Berry, a spokesman with the Mesa Police Department, confirmed Gouchenour’s report, saying both Madeline and William were located in California.
“They are both in good condition and William is now in the custody of Child Protective Services. Madeline is being detained at this time,” Berry said.
Madeline Jones and her son William have been located in California in good condition. I will provide a full update when available.
— Mesa Police Dept. (@MesaPD) October 3, 2017
Madeline’s parents, Roland and Cassandra, were arrested on Sept. 27. They were first taken into custody at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport by Phoenix police, then turned over to Mesa police and arrested shortly after.
Their arrests come one day after police submitted charges against them for conspiring to commit interference in the disappearance of Madeline and William.
Roland and Cassandra told police that their daughter was going to retain an appellate attorney after she was granted joint custody of her son with Gouchenour, when she went missing.
Before she went missing, police documents detailed Madeline’s efforts to dye her hair and withdraw large amounts of cash.
Police said Cassandra “provided misinformation to purposefully mislead police when reporting Madeline and William missing, making bank withdrawals and providing cash to Madeline to assist in a ‘vacation,’ was present while Madeline changed her and William’s appearance,” court documents said.
