Courtesy of Jenelle Evans/Instagram
Teen Mom’s Jenelle Evans’ Son Jace Found Safe and Is ‘Fine’ After 2nd Disappearance
Teen Mom alum Jenelle Evans’ eldest son, Jace Evans, returned home safely after he was reported missing for a second time.
Jace, 14, was found near his home in North Carolina on Monday, August 28, after Jenelle, 31, contacted police about his disappearance, according to multiple reports. Jenelle reported her son as missing after she grew concerned when she hadn’t heard from Jace for several hours. Jace was eventually found at a gas station that’s 10 minutes away from their family’s home.
“Jenelle is a momma bear raising a teenage boy. Jace likes exploring his extensive property that has woods, lakes,” the former reality star’s manager, August Keen, said in a statement to In Touch. “He decided to explore too far Jenelle got worried and called the police after he didn’t come back before it became dark.”
August said that Jace and the rest of their family are doing “fine,” adding that there was “nothing to be alarmed about.” The statement continued, “Jace is a teenager finding his independence, wanting a bit more freedom, and Jenelle is a momma bear.”
Jace’s second disappearance came just two weeks after he was reported missing. The teen was reported as a runaway by Brunswick Co. Sheriff’s Department on August 15. According to a police report obtained by In Touch, Jace was seen leaving school around 2:45 p.m. on the day of his disappearance, before being located “in the trees behind the school building” per his location on Snapchat. Jenelle, meanwhile, denied that her son was located thanks to social media and spoke about her son’s behavior.
“As a boy mom, kids can act up and rebel as I’m sure the majority of us all once did as kids too,” Jenelle said in a statement. “Jace got in trouble at school, we decided to take his phone away, and that’s when he decided to run off. Jace is a good kid and we’re not dealing with anything that most families don’t deal with while raising children … This is a teenage boy being a teenager mad that we decided to take his phone away.”
On August 16, Jenelle addressed the Snapchat elephant in the room, writing on her Facebook, “My son was not found ‘because of Snapchat.’ There are a lot of rumors going around about what happened. I would like to take this time to give my son privacy and appreciate if the public would do the same.
The MTV alum shares Jace with ex Andew Lewis, while she is also the mother to son Kaiser with ex Nathan Griffith and daughter Ensley with her husband, David Eason.
Two days after Jace’s first disappearance, Jenelle spoke out against her mom, Barbara Evans, for allegedly spreading false information after Jace’ disappearance.
“Cut my own mother off again, and she has to keep going with the articles,” the mother of three wrote via Facebook. “Doesn’t call to check up, doesn’t ask me how he is, but talks to TMZ to give updates she knows nothing about.”
She continued, “Please do not believe anything my mother is saying to the media at this time. The truth will prevail and I’ll soon tell you when the time is right.” She also shared the Facebook post on her Instagram Stories.
While Jenelle did not specify which “updates” Barbara, 69, had given, she referenced Barbara telling TMZ that she believed Jenelle’s alleged decision to take Jace “off ADHD meds” may have led him to run away. The grandmother shared Jace had been on the medication for seven years and was seeing a behavioral specialist, which “had seemingly been working well.” However, Jenelle allegedly took her son off the medication and stopped his appointments with the specialist when she regained full custody of her son in March. Barbara previously had full custody of him for more than a decade.
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