ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Three missing Illinois children have been located in Wisconsin and police say their parents have been charged with false imprisonment and harboring a runaway.
According to the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office, on June 16th, 2022, authorities were notified by the Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS) that the children were missing and their well-being was at risk. They were said to be in the company of their parents, officials said.
On October 17th, 2023, investigators with the sheriff’s office and the US Marshals received information that the children might be at a home in the 4500 block of Centerville Road.
As law enforcement approached the house, Candy Wendt, 33, one of the parents, left in a vehicle.
Simultaneously, police said Rodney Moore, 47, the other parent, had three children get in his car and then tried to drive away, intentionally driving toward two Deputy US Marshals squad cars, forcing them off the road.
On October 25th, multiple law enforcement officers, including the Wisconsin Dells Police Department, were able to locate the children in the vicinity of 700 North Frontage Road in Wisconsin Dells.
Moore and Wendt were also arrested.
Moore, of Rockford, has been charged with false imprisonment in Sauk County, Wisconsin, and three counts of unlawful restraint, three counts of harboring a runaway, and two counts of aggravated assault with a motor vehicle in Winnebago County.
Wendt, also of Rockford, faces one count of false imprisonment in Sauk County, Wisconsin, and three counts of unlawful restraint, and three counts of harboring a runaway in Winnebago County.
