The story of Timmothy James Pitzen's disappearance began on the morning of May 11, 2011, when his father, James Pitzen, dropped the six-year-old off at Greenman Elementary School in Aurora, Illinois. Shortly after, his mother, Amy Fry-Pitzen, arrived and checked him out of his kindergarten class, claiming a family emergency that did not exist. Instead of dealing with an emergency, Amy took her son on what appeared to be a fun-filled trip.
Their first stop was the Brookfield Zoo, a place Timmothy loved. Later that day, they checked into the KeyLime Cove Resort in Gurnee, Illinois. The following day, May 12, the mother and son traveled to the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. Surveillance footage from the morning of May 13 captured the last known images of Timmothy as he and his mother stood in the checkout line of the resort.
After checking out of the Kalahari Resort, Amy Fry-Pitzen made a series of cell phone calls to family members between noon and 1:30 p.m. on May 13. During these calls, she assured relatives that she and Timmothy were safe. In the background of some of these calls, Timmothy could be heard, at one point mentioning that he was hungry. The cell phone records indicated these calls were made from an area northwest of Sterling, Illinois. Later that evening, Amy was seen alone on surveillance footage at a Family Dollar store and then a Sullivan's Foods in Winnebago, Illinois. Sometime between 11:15 and 11:30 p.m., she checked into the Rockford Inn in Rockford, Illinois. The following day, May 14, a hotel maid discovered Amy's body in her room; she had died by suicide. A note was found in the room, and she had also mailed letters to her mother and a friend. The messages stated that Timmothy was safe and with people who would love and care for him, but ominously added, "You will never find him."
The investigation into Timmothy's disappearance has been fraught with perplexing clues and heartbreaking false leads. An examination of Amy's SUV revealed it had been in a grassy, possibly rural area. In 2013, her cell phone was discovered alongside a highway, but it yielded no new evidence. A significant and painful event in the case occurred in April 2019, when a young man in Kentucky claimed to be the missing boy. This claim generated widespread media attention and a brief period of hope for Timmothy's family, but DNA testing quickly proved it to be a hoax. The individual was identified as a 23-year-old man who was later sentenced for the deception. Despite the passage of time and the lack of concrete answers, Timmothy's father and other family members have continued to hold out hope that he is still alive. The case remains an active and unsolved missing person investigation, a poignant story of a young boy who vanished after a trip with his mother, leaving behind a family searching for answers and a note that offered both a glimmer of hope and a profound sense of mystery.Last Seen: May 12, 2011
