GALLATIN, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Michigan State Police Gaylord Post is now involved in assisting law enforcement two law enforcement agencies in locating an endangered child from Gallatin, but the search has left family frustrated.
Police said 3-year-old Noah Clare is still missing and was abducted by family member, 32-year-old Jacob Clare, of Beaver Dam, Kentucky. As of Monday, Michigan authorities said that Jacob Clare, Noah and his niece, 16-year-old Amber Clare, could possibly be en route or in northern Michigan near Harbor Springs. Beaver Dam Police Department Lt. Tommy Phelps submitted the facts of the case to Kentucky State Police, noting Jacob Clare purchased the car they were last seen in Tennessee.
Police said it’s believed Jacob Clare left Ohio County, Kentucky, either late Nov. 5 or earlier Nov. 6 and was en route to Gallatin to drop off his son, Noah, with family. He never showed.
"He has a ton of family and friends up in Michigan on both sides of the family," Noah Clare's mother Amanda Ennis said. "His entire side of the family is Michigan, her mom Jamie, is from Michigan. So, just a lot of contacts up there."
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation issued an Endangered Child Alert for the 3-year-old, who has been missing from Gallatin since Saturday. Ennis said she's frustrated it hasn't risen to the level of an Amber Alert. The family has witnessed three Amber Alerts happen in the past few days. Each time it's happened those children are found within hours, the family said.
"It makes me mad, it makes me sad. Angry, frustration because, both of them," Amanda Ennis said. "There should be an Amber Alert for both of them. The fact that it's not — it's just Jake is taking them further and further away as each day goes by. I think the laws, the statutes for an Amber alert need to be changed, immediately."
The family is further frustrated police haven't sought an Amber Alert for Amber, because Phelps said she "willingly" left. In notes to her family, Phelps said Amber Clare iterated she was going on an adventure. She is now classified as missing and endangered, Phelps said.
"I know for Kentucky, they're not issuing an Amber Alert up there," Noah's uncle Adam Ennis said. "There's three (criteria) that were met here, and three that were met here. I feel like that's somehow they need to be able to merge these together to get some sort of criteria, because if they did do that, all four would be met. For this situation, the bureaucracies are getting in the way right now."
But Phelps said for an Amber Alert to take place it has to be an abduction.
"The leads are frustrating," Phelps said. "Some of them were promising, but nothing has come out of them. She’s been updated from missing to missing and endangered because she’s epileptic, and she did not bring her medicine There has to be some change in the facts of the case for it to be an Amber Alert."
Police said Jacob Clare is wanted by Gallatin police for custodial interference.
Noah Clare was last seen wearing gray pants, a camo shirt, a black jacket and black shoes.
Anyone with information was asked to call the Gallatin Police Department at 615-452-1313.
