Finner on Rudy Farias case: 'We're going to work our way through, it takes a little while'

Houston Chief of Police Troy Finner cautioned on Thursday the investigation into the Rudy Farias missing person case has just begun, warning “it takes a while,” per a report from Houston CBS affiliate KHOU. Farias was alleged to have gone missing when he was 15 years old in 2015, but the Houston Police Department (HPD) said he returned home shortly after the law enforcement agency was informed of his disappearance.

"We're going to work our way through, it takes a little while," Finner said, KHOU reported. "There's a lot of developments still, even last night."

According to CBS News, authorities said Farias’ mother, Janie Santana, misled them. The national news outlet reported that the now-22-year-old Farias was found alive earlier this month, his discovery raising scrutiny from the community. HPD Lt. Christopher Zamora said at a press conference Farias and Santana interacted with the department during the timeframe, but presented false identities and information, with Santana continuously claiming her son was missing, CBS News reported.

Houston ABC affiliate KTRK reported that investigators also questioned community activist Quanell X’s assertions Santana sexually abused and drugged Farias. Per the station, HPD didn’t receive any statements of sexual abuse in the case. Both KTRK and Houston NPR affiliate Houston Public Media (HPM) reported that the Harris County District Attorney’s (DA) Office elected not to pursue charges for the time being.

HPM reported that Finner didn’t comment on whether Farias was a victim or not, but some of his relatives who gathered outside HPD headquarters following the briefing asserted Quanell X’s allegations are true. According to KHOU, Pauline Sanchez, Farias’ aunt, labeled her half-sister a “hypocritical liar” and claimed she has connections within HPD to help cover her tracks. Santana was formerly married to a Houston police officer who died by suicide in 2014, KHOU reported.