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Missing Boy Found Alive

2 In Custody In Connection With Case, Metro Police Say

POSTED: 3:53 pm PDT October 18, 2008
UPDATED: 11:48 pm PDT October 18, 2008

Metro police have found a missing 6-year-old boy alive in downtown Las Vegas bus stop. This came just hours after Metro police canceled an Amber Alert for 6-year-old Cole Puffinburger.

Puffinburger was found near Oakey Avenue and 15th Street just before 11 p.m. Saturday, Metro police said. They did not say what condition he was found in, but that he was found alive.

This comes after a four-day investigation that led to two arrests and several search warrants issued. That's according to a Saturday afternoon news conference.

Puffinburger's grandfather, 51-year-old Clemons Tinnemeyer, is in custody in California.

Puffinburger was taken from his home on Wednesday, police said. Two Hispanic men disguised as police broke in, tied up his mother and stepfather and abducted him at gunpoint. He has not been seen since.

After Puffinburger's kidnapping, Metro police named Tinnemeyer as a person of interest in the investigation. He was last seen by his family in August after reportedly stealing $8 million from a Mexican drug cartel. Some of this money has been obtained since Tinnemeyer's arrest, Metro police said.

Once California police were able to apprehend Tinnemeyer in San Bernardino County, Metro police canceled the Amber Alert. They said that though they are still searching for the boy, they did not feel the continued alert would be necessary.

Currently, Metro is looking for a second person of interest, Jesus Gastelum. Gastelum is in his 30s and may have ties to the cartel and family.

Puffinburger's mother is now also being investigated in connection with her involvement in the cartel, Metro police said. They did not say if she played a part in Puffinburger's kidnapping.

Currently, agents are searching the northwest side of the Valley, between Nellis Boulevard and Pecos Road and Craig Road and Cheyenne Avenue.

The men are described as having Hispanic accents. One man is described as in his early 30s, 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing 150 pounds. He has black, shoulder-length, slicked-back hair. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt and blue jeans, Rivera said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Metro police at 702-828-3111.


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