Arkansas State Police arrest man for son's kidnapping in Michigan
PULASKI COUNTY, Ark. (CBS DETROIT) - Police in Arkansas have retrieved a 5-year-old boy who they said was kidnapped by his father in Michigan.
Police say 40-year-old Daniel Onoh, of Houston, Texas, was taken into custody after the Oakland County Sheriff's Office notified Arkansas State Police on Feb. 3 that they were tracking a stolen 2018 Buick Encore.
Police spotted the vehicle on northbound Interstate 530 near Sweet Home, Arkansas. Authorities stopped the vehicle on westbound I-30, west of Geyer Springs Road, and he was arrested on charges of felony theft by receiving. Felony kidnapping charges are also pending.
Onoh also has a misdemeanor warrant in Texas, according to police.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office says Onoh and the child's mother were in the car on Feb. 2 in Pontiac when they got into an argument. The mother went inside her home, and Onoh took the vehicle with the child inside.
The mother has legal custody of the child, and the father was not in his son's life until recent months, the sheriff's office said.
Following the arrest, the child was released to the Arkansas Department of Human Services until the mother arrived in Little Rock. They have since returned to Michigan.
"There is nothing more important to us than keeping children safe," Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said in a written statement. "I couldn't be happier about the teamwork between us and Arkansas State Police that led to a safe rescue of this child."
An investigation is ongoing. The sheriff's office said it is working to have Onoh extradited back to Oakland County.