NJ Dad Killed Ex, Kidnapped 2-Year-Old Son: Indictment | Clark, NJ Patch – Patch.com

UNION COUNTY, NJ — A Union County Grand Jury returned a six-count indictment against New Jersey father Tyler Rios charged with killing using strangulation of his former girlfriend and kidnapping their two-year-old son, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel announced Thursday.

Rios, 27 of East Orange, is charged with one count of first-degree murder, one count of first-degree kidnapping, and one count each of desecrating human remains, endangering the welfare of a child, contempt by violating a domestic violence restraining order and theft in connection with the kidnapping of his son and murder of the child’s mother, 24-year-old Yasemin Uyar of Rahway.

The indictment alleges that on July 8, Rios kidnapped their son, Sebastian Rios and murdered Uyar. This resulted in a widely broadcasted Amber Alert and launched a multi-state investigation
which led to the recovery of the child and the discovery of Uyar’s body in Tennessee.

The race to find Uyar and their son began on July 9 when Sebastian Rios did not show up for daycare and Uyar did not arrive for work, according to Union County Assistant Prosecutor Robert Grady, who is prosecuting the case.

A welfare check was conducted on Uyar’s home by members of the Rahway Police Department, but no one was found inside.

Shortly thereafter, the State Police issued an Amber Alert that was sent to privately owned cell phones, broadcast on electronic billboards along highways in New Jersey and beyond, and widely shared via social media. Read More: Amber Alert Canceled For 2-Year-Old Boy, Mom In Union County

On Saturday at about 3 a.m., the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office in Tennessee got a call from the Union County Prosecutor’s Office in New Jersey about the alleged abduction and that Rios, the former boyfriend of Uyar and father of Sebastian, may or could harm them.

Rios was reportedly driving a silver 2018 Ford Fiesta.

At about 3:15 a.m., Monterey Police Officers, along with Putnam County Deputies, found the silver Ford Fiesta at the parking lot of the Bethel Inn Hotel located near I-40 just off exit 301 in Monterey, Tennessee, said Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities found Rios was staying in a room at the hotel. Police tried to convince Rios to give up and leave his room but authorities said he refused to do so. Police subsequently entered the hotel room by force taking Rios into custody, the sheriff’s office said.

On July 10, the 2-year-old toddler was also inside the room, unharmed, and was immediately taken by police and placed in a safe location and cared for, according to authorities.

Police searched both the hotel room and the Ford Fiesta. The car was taken to the FBI forensic crime lab for further forensic analysis.

Rios led authorities to a wooded area inside Putnam County, just inside Monterey city limits on highway 70, where the dead body of Uyar was found, according to authorities.

An autopsy performed on Uyar revealed that her death resulted from strangulation and blunt force trauma.

Rios was extradited back to New Jersey on July 16 and remains housed in the Essex County Jail pending an Oct. 12 post-indictment arraignment before the Honorable John M. Deitch of the Union County Superior Court.

“We are grateful for the collaboration with the many local and federal law enforcement agencies who assisted our Office in not only apprehending Mr. Rios, but also in safely recovering Sebastian Rios, locating Ms. Uyar’s remains and bringing them both home to their family,” said Daniel. “And we hope that this can bring some small measure of comfort to all those grieving Yasemin.”

Rios faces up to life in state prison on the charges.

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