The FBI and two dozen agencies are working to locate a missing 6-year-old boy with special needs who went missing in North Carolina on Saturday. Maddox Ritch was last seen by his father and another adult at Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia, according to local police. The FBI arrived in Gastonia Sunday to assist the city's police and fire departments, along with other local agencies, with the search. Around 100 people searched the more than 1,400 acres in and around the park on Sunday. The FBI has joined in on the search for Maddox Ritch. Gastonia Police Dept. GPD also had search and rescue teams working overnight, according to the agency's Facebook page. Neighboring Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department also sent in their helicopter to help with an aerial search through the night. Gastonia Police were also told informed that Maddox has autism and is nonverbal. Maddox was last seen wearing an orange T-shirt with "I am the man" written on the front. "Maddox's family has been interviewed and is working closely with us," Gastonia Police Chief Robert Helton told local NBC affiliate, WCNC. "At this time, they ask for privacy and prayers. Every second counts when a child is missing. Our focus is to find Maddox as quickly as possible and to bring him home." Authorities have issued a tip line for anyone who has any information or was at the park at the time of the boy's disappearance. An AMBER Alert has not been issued because Ritch's disappearance "has not fit the criteria," FBI special agent Jason Kaplan told WCNC. Local police have canceled all activities at the park as it will remain closed to the public until further notice.<doc-sep>(CNN) — The mother of a missing autistic North Carolina boy tearfully pleaded Tuesday for anyone to come forward with information that might help find her son. “I would appreciate it if you were at the park Saturday and saw Maddox, to please, urgently, please, call the tip line, please,” Carrie Ritch said, reading a statement as the search for Maddox Scott Ritch, who is nonverbal, entered its fourth day. “Continue praying for him because I just want my baby home, please. Whatever you can do.” Ritch appeared at a press conference with authorities who urged any potential witnesses to come forward. The FBI also announced a $10,000 reward for information in the case. The 6-year-old was last seen Saturday in the Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia. Local, state and federal authorities had expanded their search two miles beyond the park’s boundaries, city police said. Hundreds of investigators, analysts and others have joined in the search for the boy in about 250 acres of the park area. Earlier, police pumped prerecorded messages from his parents into the sprawling park in hopes of drawing out the youngster. “If he’s lost in the woods, he’ll be able to hear those messages played, and we’re hoping that he’ll come to the words of his mother and his father,” FBI supervisory special agent Jason Kaplan told reporters on Monday. Gastonia Police have issued an updated missing child poster with a new tip line number in the search for a missing... Posted by Gastonia Police Department on Sunday, September 23, 2018 The park’s grounds include trails and paved walking paths, an 80-acre lake, about a dozen picnic shelters and an 18-hole disc golf course, according to city of Gastonia’s website. The expanded search effort includes ground teams with canines and aircraft, including drones. Police are also employing sonar and infrared technologies. Authorities are draining water from the lake to expose more of the shoreline for examination, and police are contacting businesses around the park to see if they have useful surveillance video, Gastonia police Chief Robert Helton said. “We want to make sure that we’re checking every possible spot to find this child,” he said. Helton said agents and detectives from more than a dozen local, state and federal agencies are conducting interviews and have generated more than 150 leads. Maddox was last seen with his father and another adult at the park around 1:30 p.m. Saturday, according to CNN affiliate WSOC in Charlotte. “They were walking around the lake,” Gastonia city spokeswoman Rachel Bagley told WSOC. “They got around to the back side of the lake. He started running, according to the parents, and when they started running after him, they lost sight of him, and no one has seen him ever since.” So many people are helping in the search for 6-year-old boy, Maddox Scott Ritch, who is missing since yesterday from... Posted by Gastonia Police Department on Sunday, September 23, 2018 Helton said authorities would like to talk to an unidentified jogger who was in the park at the time, and to a professional photographer who witnesses said was taking photos of other children dressed in Dr. Seuss costumes. On Sunday, police canceled all activities at the park and closed it to the public until further notice. Authorities said they are investigating all possibilities into what led to Maddox’s disappearance. “No piece of information is too small. Something you may think is insignificant could be helpful to our case,” Helton said Sunday. Police said Maddox is 4 feet tall and weighs 45 pounds. He has blond hair and blue eyes. Maddox was last seen wearing an orange T-shirt with the words “I am the man,” along with black shorts and closed-toe sandals. Helton said there were a lot of children in the park on the day Maddox disappeared, including other blond-haired boys wearing orange T-shirts. “We need to know if you saw our blond-haired boy with the orange shirt,” Helton said. Ritch said her son “is my whole world and my reason for living. He’s momma’s boy.” “Maddox loves the park. He loves Bouncy Balls and he loves his teddy bear,” she said. CNN’s AnneClaire Stapleton, Darran Simon and Hollie Silverman contributed to this report.<doc-sep>Federal authorities have joined the frantic search for a missing 6-year-old boy with autism who was last seen at a North Carolina park Saturday. The Gastonia Police Department said Maddox Ritch, who has non-verbal autism, was last seen Saturday at 1 p.m. at Rankin Lake Park, located about 20 miles west of Charlotte. One of Ritch's parents and two other adults were walking on the backside of the lake at the park when Maddox took off running and got out of their sight, police told FOX46. When the group of adults weren't quickly able to locate the 6-year-old, they called 911. Since Saturday, authorities have searched more than 1,400 acres around the Rankin Lake Park using a helicopter from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and boat from the Charlotte Fire Department. Police are asking anyone near the popular park on Saturday to try to remember any details that could help them find the boy. "We know a lot of people were in the park and we have spoken to many of them, but we have not spoken to everyone," Gastonia Police Chief Robert Helton said at a news conference. "No piece of information is too small. Something you may think is insignificant could be helpful to our case.” NAVY VET'S BODY FOUND AFTER HE'S REPORTED MISSING DURING HAWAIIAN HONEYMOON On Sunday, federal agents also joined the search for Ritch. “The FBI has very specially trained teams that are especially focused on finding missing children," FBI Supervisor Jason Kaplan said. Ritch is described as being 4-foot, 45 pounds with blonde hair and was last seen wearing an orange "I am the man" t-shirt and black shorts with a white stripe. Anyone with information is asked to contact a special tip line established by Gastonia Police, 704-869-1075.<doc-sep>A body believed to be that of a 6-year-old boy with special needs who went missing in North Carolina over the weekend was found Thursday in a creek near the park where he was last seen, authorities said. Gastonia Police Chief Robert Helton said at a Thursday afternoon news conference that he was "heartbroken" over the grim discovery five days after Maddox Ritch disappeared. "This is not the end that we hoped for," Helton told reporters, fighting back tears. "I've lost a lot of sleep this week worrying about Maddox." Authorities have notified the parents of the boy, FBI special agent Jason Kaplan said at a news conference on Thursday afternoon. Ritch, who has autism and is nonverbal, went missing at Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia on Saturday, police have said. He was last seen by his father and another adult. "The investigation is not over," Kaplan told reporters, adding that law enforcement officials still want to speak with people who were in the park. The body was found partially submerged in the creek by a member of a team of 15 searchers, Gastonia fire chief Phil Welch said at the news conference. The depth of the creek, located more than a mile east of the park, was about two to three feet, Kaplan told reporters. "There is no sense of accomplishment here today," Welch said. "There is grieving down at our command post." With heavy hearts we announce a body believed to be 6-year-old Maddox Ritch was found at approximately 1 p.m. off of Marietta Street/Old Dallas Highway in Gastonia. Maddox’s parents have been notified of the discovery. The investigation is ongoing. — FBI Charlotte (@FBICharlotte) September 27, 2018 The FBI and two dozen agencies had worked to locate him, with around 100 people scouring more than 1,400 acres in and around the park over the weekend. The identification of the body will be done by the medical examiner's office, Gastonia police said in an statement.<doc-sep>
Maddox Scott Ritch, 6, who is nonverbal, has been missing since Saturday. (CNN) — Police hope a missing boy who has autism will respond to his parents’ voices, and they’re pumping prerecorded messages into the woods of a sprawling park in Gastonia, North Carolina, in hopes of drawing out the youngster. The search for Maddox Scott Ritch, who is nonverbal, entered its fifth day early Wednesday as search crews patrolled overnight on foot and ATVs for the missing 6-year-old boy. Gastonia Police Department said investigators got additional tip calls from people who were at the park Saturday when the boy vanished, and will continue using search drones. He was last seen in the city’s Rankin Lake Park. On Monday, local, state and federal authorities expanded their search 2 miles beyond the park’s boundaries, city police said. Maddox’s parents, who have not been identified, worked with law enforcement to record messages that search teams are piping into the park to coax him out, FBI supervisory special agent Jason Kaplan said. “If he’s lost in the woods, he’ll be able to hear those messages played, and we’re hoping that he’ll come to the words of his mother and his father,” FBI supervisory special agent Jason Kaplan told reporters on Monday. Gastonia Police have issued an updated missing child poster with a new tip line number in the search for a missing... Posted by Gastonia Police Department on Sunday, September 23, 2018 The expanded search effort includes ground teams with canines and aircraft, including drones. Police are also employing sonar and infrared technologies. Authorities are draining water from the lake to expose more of the shoreline for examination, and police are contacting businesses around the park to see if they have useful surveillance video, Gastonia police Chief Robert Helton said. “We want to make sure that we’re checking every possible spot to find this child,” he said. Helton said agents and detectives from more than a dozen local, state and federal agencies are conducting interviews and have generated more than 150 leads. Maddox was last seen with his father and another adult at the park around 1:30 p.m. Saturday, according to CNN affiliate WSOC in Charlotte. “They were walking around the lake,” Gastonia city spokeswoman Rachel Bagley told WSOC. “They got around to the back side of the lake. He started running, according to the parents, and when they started running after him, they lost sight of him, and no one has seen him ever since.” So many people are helping in the search for 6-year-old boy, Maddox Scott Ritch, who is missing since yesterday from... Posted by Gastonia Police Department on Sunday, September 23, 2018 Helton said authorities would like to talk to an unidentified jogger who was in the park at the time, and to a professional photographer who witnesses said was taking photos of other children dressed in Dr. Seuss costumes. Authorities said they are investigating all possibilities into what led to Maddox’s disappearance. “If you were at Rankin Lake Park on Saturday and saw Maddox or took video or photos of their outing at the park, call us,” Helton said Sunday. “We know a lot of people were in the park, and we have spoken to many of them, but we have not spoken to everyone. No piece of information is too small. Something you may think is insignificant could be helpful to our case.” Police said Maddox is 4 feet tall and weighs 45 pounds. He has blond hair and blue eyes. Maddox was last seen wearing an orange T-shirt with the words “I am the man,” along with black shorts and closed-toe sandals. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information that leads to his location. CNN’s AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.