By ,
Published January 14, 2015
Authorities may have a significant lead in the kidnapping of a 3-year-old California boy during a brazen armed robbery, they told FOX News.
San Bernardino County sheriffs have "got a very good lead that the public can help us with," they told FOX. They released two sketches of the suspects on Wednesday afternoon.
"Investigators have developed some information that they are following up on and will determine if it is significant to the case," the San Bernardino County Sheriff's office said in a statement Wednesday.
A scheduled press conference was cancelled because authorities said they did not want to jeopardize the investigation of the abduction of Briant Rodriguez by gun-wielding thieves.
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A homicide detective fluent in both English and Spanish spent several hours Wednesday morning with Briant's mother, Maria Rosalina Millan, who only speaks Spanish.
Detectives say tips have been pouring in, but most weren't yielding any solid information leading to the toddler's whereabouts.
There remained no ransom demand Wednesday morning, according to San Bernardino County sheriff's Lt. Rick Ells.
No motive had been established and federal and local investigators were looking at several theories, including that the Spanish-speaking kidnappers were from Mexico and may have had ties to organized crime there.
Border authorities were put on alert and FBI agents were helping in the investigation.
"Every minute, every second that passes, is critical," investigating Sgt. Doug Hubbard said at a news conference. "But we are remaining positive and investigating it as if we just went on scene."
Two gunmen burst through the family's front door Sunday and tied up Briant along with four of his siblings and their mother, then ransacked the house, stealing money and other property, the Sheriff's Department said.
"If anybody sees him please call the police," Millan said at the news conference. "They might have cut his hair so people don't recognize him, but it's the same beautiful, beautiful face."
Sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Beavers said investigators were looking at numerous theories about where the little boy is, who his kidnappers are and what their motive might be.
"They've been looking at many, many avenues," she said. "It's certainly a possibility they were up from Mexico."
The home invasion lasted about 20 minutes, after which the men left with Briant, ordering his mother and the other children not to call police, officials said.
The family lives in a modest, single-story home in a lower-income area abutting the city of San Bernardino, about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.
Police are concerned that TV news vans parked outside the family's house might be keeping the abductors from making contact.
One of the children was able to loosen himself from his ties and freed the rest of the family, authorities said. Briant is the youngest of Millan's seven children. Her 16-year-old son was not home and another adult child does not live at home.
The boy's father was at work at the time and the initial investigation pointed to the kidnappers being strangers to the family, Ells said.
Sheriff's deputies called the California Highway Patrol about 7 1/2 hours after the kidnapping. That agency issued an Amber Alert soon after but they had no witness descriptions of the abductors' vehicle that could be posted on highway information signs to help locate the suspects.
FOX News' Adam Housley and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/story/police-have-very-good-lead-in-abduction-of-3-year-old-california-boy