A trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol on Sunday in Wildwood intercepted a suspect and safely recovered a child following an AMBER Alert issued earlier in the day for an abducted 7-year-old child from Rivera Beach.
The trooper, who had received an alert identifying a 2019 BMW 440I with Georgia tag TBZ4664, positioned himself in a manner that would allow him to see if the vehicle crossed his path.
Less than 10 minutes later, the trooper observed a vehicle matching the description of the suspect vehicle exiting the Florida Turnpike onto northbound Interstate 75. With the help of a Sumter County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit, the trooper conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle. After confirming the suspect’s identity, the child was unharmed, recovered, and returned to his mother.
The suspect, 44-year-old Jean R. Simeus of Macon, Ga., was arrested on an out-of-county warrant for kidnapping and was transported to the Sumter County Detention Center without bond, where he was booked without incident.