DAMIEN SELLS - 6 yo - Las Cruces - NM

Missing Child: Police on the lookout for Jacob Heath Sells, 27, who may have fled state with 6-year-old son (10:13 a.m.)

Posted: 11/17/2010 10:08:02 AM MST



Las Cruces Police are asking for the public's help in locating a father who appears to have fled the state with his 6-year-old son after being ordered to establish a custody agreement with the boy's mother.Jacob Heath Sells, 27, has been charged in Magistrate Court with one count of custodial interference, a fourth-degree felony, though his whereabouts - and the whereabouts of his son - are unknown at this time. Police have reason to believe that Sells is headed to Atmore, Ala., with his son Damien. Sells has family living in Atmore.Las Cruces Police learned that on Sunday, Nov. 14, Sells was served with a District Court summons to establish a physical custody and visitation agreement with his ex-girlfriend in reference to their son. Sometime between Sunday and Tuesday, Sells quit his job at a local hospital and telephoned his son's school and stated the boy wouldn't be attending classes because of an illness.A District Court judge on Tuesday approved an emergency motion that grants Sells' ex-girlfriend with temporary custody of their son. A Magistrate Court warrant was issued Tuesday evening for the arrest of Jacob Sells.Sells is 5-feet-8-inches tall and weighs approximately 165 pounds. He has brown hair and green eyes. Sells may be driving a gray 2006 Chevrolet Colorado extended cab pickup. The vehicle's Alabama license plate is 30C224R and the rear view window has an image of a hanging coconut with several feathers.Damien Sells, 6, is 3-feet-tall and weighs around 50 pounds. Like his father, Damien has brown hair and green eyes. He has a small scar in the middle of his forehead and is missing his two upper-front teeth.Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Jacob Heath Sells, or his son Damien, is asked to call 911.
http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_16636591

The 27-year-old father who left Las Cruces with his son after being served with a summons for a child custody hearing was located this afternoon in Atmore, Ala., with the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service.Criminal charges in New Mexico against Jacob Heath Sells are expected to be dropped after Las Cruces Police investigators received information today that a court in Alabama had previously established a child custody plan. Las Cruces Police learned that on Sunday, Sells was served with a District Court summons to establish a physical custody and visitation agreement with his ex-girlfriend in reference to their 6-year-old son, Damien. LCPD detectives learned that sometime between Sunday and Tuesday Jacob Sells quit his job at a Las Cruces hospital and informed his son's school that boy wouldn't be attending classes because of an illness.A District Court judge on Tuesday approved an emergency motion that granted Sells' ex-girlfriend with temporary custody of their son until the matter can be resolved. A Magistrate Court warrant was issued Tuesday for the arrest of Sells, but that warrant is expected to be quashed and the matter now appears to be a civil case.