Boy, 11, Vanished from His Home. He Was Allegedly Found in Sex Offender's Car Days Later After Horrific Ordeal By Sean Neumann

A Florida man was arrested and charged with kidnapping and aggravated child abuse after a dramatic traffic stop earlier this month. Police say he tried to run from officers, sparking a high-speed chase involving a 15-year-old boy they believe may have been his “co-conspirator.”

Darnell Hairston was arrested on the morning of New Year’s Eve and charged with six felonies, including kidnapping, aggravated child abuse, robbery with a firearm, strangulation, depriving the means of protection or communication, and resisting an officer with violence, according to Flagler County Sheriff’s Office records reviewed by PEOPLE.

Records show Hairston, 60, was also charged with a misdemeanor. Hairston allegedly tried to flee police during the Dec. 31, traffic stop. The stop turned into a chaotic scene soon after officers allegedly discovered a missing 11-year-old child in the vehicle with him and the older teenage boy.

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that someone told deputies they saw Hairston — described in the release as “a known sex offender” — driving with two underage boys, including an 11-year-old reported missing from St. Johns County three days earlier.

“During the traffic stop and after deputies had separated Hairston and each of the juveniles, one of the juveniles stated to a deputy that they had been kidnapped, were not safe, and believed they would be killed if deputies did not intervene,” the sheriff’s office said in the release. “The 11-year-old victim was clearly traumatized and in fear.”

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After officers took the 11-year-old boy and placed him inside a patrol car, they returned to Hairston’s pickup truck and asked him to get out, according to the release. At that point, police video of the incident shared by the local sheriff’s office online showed the man identified by authorities as Hairston try to sprint away from police officers after they asked him to step out of the vehicle.

The police footage shows the man turning and bolting away from officers before quickly tripping over his own feet just a few steps past his car. Officers quickly pounced on the man and put him in handcuffs. But as they did, the 15-year-old boy who was in the car with the man snuck back to the driver’s side door, got in, and drove away from the scene.

Police later caught up with the 15-year-old on a two-lane highway. Video apparently shows him steering the pickup around a police cruiser and seemingly trying to ram it off the road. The vehicles collided, lost control, and crashed into a wooded area.

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said the 15-year-old boy — described in the release as possibly Hairston’s “co-conspirator” — was unscathed while two officers “received minor injuries” during the incident. Authorities said the teenager was later charged with aggravated fleeing and eluding, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, reckless driving, driving without a license, and resisting an officer without violence. The 15-year-old was later turned over to the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, according to police.

The sheriff’s office said in the release that the 11-year-old boy rescued during the traffic stop later told investigators that he had been lured to a campsite, where he alleged Hairston “choked him until he lost consciousness.”

“After regaining consciousness, the child told detectives he was threatened with a knife and a firearm, tied up with shoelaces and an extension cord, and had duct tape placed over his mouth,” the sheriff’s office said in the release. “The child also told detectives that Hairston held him at the campsite for multiple days and made him travel on the floorboard of his truck covered by a blanket.”

County jail records reviewed by PEOPLE show Hairston remains in custody and is being held on a $425,000 total bond in connection with his charges. No court date has been set in Hairston’s case, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.