CRESTVIEW — Police believe that a couple accused of kidnapping a 3-year-old autistic boy executed a well-thought-out plan.
This afternoon, Crestview police uncovered a 2009 Dodge Caravan that Karl R. Menz and Virginia M. Lynch, Emmanuel Menz's biological father and mother, were believed to have driven after leaving a Crestview Burger King. Arrest warrants were issued for them around noon.
Lawmen found the vehicle in the back parking lot of the nearby Cracker Barrel. Officials are saying the couple may have planned the kidnapping prior to yesterday.
"At this point, it appears to be a well-executed plan," Police Chief Tony Taylor said.
The couple rented a U-Haul renting van in Fort Walton Beach prior to yesterday's alleged kidnapping at the South Ferdon Boulevard restaurant.
City police have enlisted the help of the FBI, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Taylor said. The Department of Children and Family Services is also involved in the investigation.
“Our primary objective is getting the child back. Our secondary objective is putting these people in jail," Taylor said.
Daily News writer Tom McLaughlin contributed to this report.
Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Matthew Brown at 850-682-6524 or matthewb@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbMatthew.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Police: Kidnapping seems like a 'well-executed plan'