NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (June 16, 2026) — A New Rochelle man was arrested in the Bronx on June 15 after a more than year-long missing child investigation, and his 12-year-old son was subsequently returned safely to his mother, New Rochelle police announced.
Dwight Richards, 54, of New Rochelle, was taken into custody by New Rochelle Police Department detectives on a Family Court warrant. The boy’s mother had reported him missing in March 2025.
Richards was arrested in the Bronx. The missing child was not with him at the time of the arrest, but Richards subsequently facilitated the boy’s return to New Rochelle police, according to the department.
The 12-year-old was evaluated and found to be in good health. He was brought to New Rochelle Family Court to be reunited with his mother, who holds full custody.
Richards faces a charge of violating the Family Court Act and was also arrested on a Westchester County warrant for Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree, a Class A misdemeanor under New York Penal Law Section 215.50.
The New Rochelle Police Department credited the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office and other law enforcement partners with assisting in locating the child and resolving the investigation.
UPDATE: Westchester County District Attorney Susan Cacace announced that Dwight C. Richards is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday morning in White Plains City Court on a misdemeanor information charging him with one count of Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree, a Class A misdemeanor.
According to the misdemeanor information filed with the court, on July 18, 2025, Richards violated a mandate issued by Westchester County Family Court Judge Allison E. Burke by failing to produce his son in court that day. The misdemeanor information alleges Richards remained in violation of the court’s mandate through the present.
“I am relieved beyond measure that, nearly one year later, King Richards was found in good health and was returned to the care of his mother,” Cacace said. “The defendant’s alleged defiance of the Family Court, allegedly concealing his son for the better part of a year, caused his mother and everyone in this county an agonizing wait as the child’s whereabouts remained unknown for so long. I want to commend the New Rochelle police for never giving up their search efforts or their hope that King Richards would be located safe and sound. Their diligence led to today’s reunion.”
The case is being prosecuted by the DA’s Child Abuse Bureau.
This article was prepared with the assistance of AI tools under the direction and editing of Robert Cox.
Have information about this story? Email robertcox@talkofthesound.com (preferred) or contact via WhatsApp: +353 089 972 0669.
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