FITCHBURG — Police are searching for a missing Fitchburg family, including five children ranging in age from 9 months old to 10 years old, and have issued warrants for the children’s parents, authorities said.
The Fitchburg Police Department is attempting to locate Ruth Encarnacion and Isael Rivera, along with the five children they reside with, according to a statement issued by the department yesterday. Police urge anyone with information on their whereabouts to contact the Fitchburg Police Department Detective Bureau at (978) 345-9650.
Fitchburg police launched an investigation after receiving a missing person report for Encarnacion on March 3. Two days later, the Department of Children and Families (DCF) reported her five children missing on March 5. Following the DCF report, Massachusetts State Police troopers assigned to the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office joined the investigation, police said.
Authorities believe the family may be traveling in a black 2018 Infiniti QX60 with Massachusetts registration 5GCX18.
Police have obtained warrants for both Encarnacion and Rivera on five counts each of custodial kidnapping of a minor by a relative.
While police considered issuing an AMBER Alert, they determined the situation did not meet the criteria. AMBER Alerts are reserved for cases where a child is in imminent danger of serious bodily harm or death and do not typically apply to parental kidnapping or child custody situations that lack such specific threats, police said.
The Fitchburg Police Department’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation, in collaboration with Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office, is actively investigating the case.
