Mom asks for help finding 6-year-old son missing from park

GASTONIA, N.C. (AP/WISH) — The mother of a 6-year-old boy who disappeared from a North Carolina park over the weekend is asking the public for help.

News outlets report that on Tuesday, in her first public appearance since the disappearance of Maddox Ritch, his mother, Carrie, tearfully asked anyone who was at Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia on Saturday to call the tip line.

Gastonia Police Chief Robert Helton says they’ve searched thousands of acres, drained water from the lake and conducted hundreds of interviews since Maddox disappeared while at the park with his father.

Helton says in particular, investigators still want to speak to speak to a male jogger and anyone in a group with a photographer taking pictures of three children in Dr. Seuss costumes. He says they may have important information.

The FBI says Maddox has autism and is non-verbal. The FBI is offering $10,000 for information on his location.