Grandparents Of Ambrose Klingensmith Finally At Ease After Grandson Found Safe In Tennessee
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A local couple accused of fleeing town with their 7-week-old baby after doctors flagged suspected abuse are in custody in Tennessee.
Daemon Klingensmith and Jeannette Funner were taken into custody on Tuesday evening in Marshall County, Tennessee.
The two adults are awaiting extradition and facing charges, including obstruction in a child abuse case, retaliation and child endangerment. They will go before a judge in Tennesee on Oct. 8.
According to police, 7-week-old Ambrose Klingensmith was at Children's Hospital last Thursday when doctors observed stomach injuries and fingermark bruising consistent with abuse. They say his parents took the child before doctors could finish their evaluation. They also left with Funnen's 3-year-old son.
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"A week of sleepless nights" is how the grandparents of Ambrose Klingensmith described how they've felt since their 23-year-old son took off with his wife and their grandchild.
"I slept 11 hours last night because I didn't sleep more than three hours since this happened," said Eric Klingensmith, Daemon's father.
Tuesday afternoon, the FBI tracked the family in Tennesee, and the Lewisburg Police Department's Assistant Chief Scott Braden helped make the arrest.
"I think the only conversation, the only thing I heard, was they wanted to know how we knew where they were at," Braden said.
The grandparents constantly called their grandson while he was on the run.
WATCH: KDKA's Meghan Schiller reports live after talking with Ambrose Klingensmith's grandparents.
He never picked up, but he did send them an email, and the FBI used that to find the family's location.
"It's a stepping stone," said Kimberly Klingensmith, Daemon's mother. "We don't have to search any longer."
The FBI also received a tip and began looking for the couple's vehicle, a 2001 Buick Century.
KDKA's Meghan Schiller: "When it came to trying to find that car, how hard was it to spot that make and model?"
Braden: "I think the vehicle stood out. And we had the entire criminal investigation division out in unmarked cars and we had a crime suppression unit."
Ambrose and the other child will remain in the care of the local Tennessee child welfare authorities until the Allegheny County Child, Youth and Families can take custody.
Ambrose's grandparents say it was all a misunderstanding, and the bruising on the child happened because the parents massaged the infant's stomach to ease its constipation.
Still, they say running was a bad idea.
"I think it's going to be a long time before they let my son and his wife be near the kids," Eric Klingensmith said. "And there's going to be a process here."
