BERLIN, New Hampshire — Two missing children who prompted an hourslong Amber Alert in New Hampshire are safe and their father is in police custody after their mother was found dead in an apartment, officials said.
Troopers responding to an apartment at 1063 Main Street in Berlin on Thursday around 10:30 p.m. found Caitlyn Naffziger, 31, dead inside, according to New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella.
Formella called Naffziger’s death “suspicious” in nature and as part of the investigation, New Hampshire State Police issued an Amber Alert around 3:30 a.m. Friday asking for the public’s assistance in locating her two kids, 4-year-old Elowyn Duren and 1-year-old Vaelyn Duren.
The children had been last seen in Berlin, New Hampshire, around 8 p.m. Thursday with their biological father, 37-year-old Dustin Mark Duren.
At 10:30 a.m. Friday, New Hampshire State Police announced that Elowyn and Vaelyn had been found safe in Keene, which is about three hours south of their last known location.
Formella’s office said that Dustin was taken into custody. It’s not clear what charges he’ll face in connection with the incident.
A photo shared with Boston 25 News showed Dustin’s vehicle being towed from a plaza that houses Five Guys and Applebee’s.
“I looked out the window this morning, and three cop cars got here really fast, almost immediately with weapons drawn,” Five Guys worker Elizabeth Everitt recalled. “Multiple cop cars came in behind them after that. Within two minutes, they were all on the ground with the suspect and I saw the kids being carried out and put into an ambulance...It all happened very fast.”
Everitt said she was told that Dustin’s vehicle was parked in a to-go spot outside the closed Applebee’s and that a worker at a nearby Townfair Tire or Autozone may have called in the suspicious sight.
Everitt called the sight of officers with weapons drawn “very weird” because crime isn’t rampant in the area, adding that the children didn’t appear to be suffering from any injuries.
When the Amber Alert was initially issued, state police asked the public to be on the lookout for a white 2017 Subaru Impreza with a New Hampshire veteran registration V69023.
The public was also asked not to approach Dustin and the kids, and to call 911 immediately because they described him as “armed and dangerous.”
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An autopsy on Naffziger has been scheduled by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Concord for 12:30 PM.
Naffziger’s death and the alleged abduction of the children remain under investigation.
There were no additional details immediately available.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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