Sebastian Rogers updates: Father reveals breakdown in contact with missing teen’s mother and stepfather

Reporting from the Emergency Operations Centre in Sumner County on Tuesday showed the vast area searched already for Sebastian.

Local News Channel 5 reporter Nick Beres spoke with the centre’s director Ken Weidner, who explained that hundreds of people had been involved in the search for the 15-year-old.

“We’ve got close to 1,500 searchers… the first two days we logged 2,000 search miles,” Mr Weidner said, adding that there had still been no sign of Sebastian.

“We’re not stopping, we’re working on leads and information from TBI and the Sheriff’s Office and we’ve got teams on standby ready to go right now.”

Seth Rogers wiped away tears as he spoke of his month-long search for his boy in an interview on Monday night:

Sebastian’s mother Katie Proudfoot said in an interview with Crime Stories with Nancy Grace on Monday that he was never one to wander off.

“We haven’t had issues with him running or taking off in the past,” Ms Proudfoot said, whilst also explaining that he had not really socialised with school friends.

The mother said she did not typically check on Sebastian throughout the night, now, as he had gotten older.

The prevailing theory is that Sebastian left the home of his own accord, barefoot, sometime in the night.

Nancy Grace repeatedly asked them about details on the lighting around the house and whether there was any evidence of Sebastian having left the home, which the couple said they did not have.

Sebastian Rogers has not been seen in four weeks. He was last seen wearing a black sweatshirt and black sweatpants.

During their interview with Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, Sebastian’s mother and stepfather, Katie and Chris Proudfoot, addressed the reports they had packed up and left the home their son disappeared from:

In an interview with News Nation, Sebastian’s father Seth Rogers said that he had not been able to speak with his son’s mother and stepfather for around two weeks.

“I haven’t spoken to them for two weeks. They’re not talking to me,” Mr Rogers said on Katie and Chris Proudfoot, whose home Sebastian disappeared from on 26 February.

The boy, who has high-functioning autism, has not been seen since his mom sent him to bed the night before.

Mr Rogers has been seen out searching for his son, saying that his disappearance just doesn’t make sense.

“His shoes (were at) the front door. His (Nintendo) Switch was there. His phone was in the kitchen,” Mr Roger said. “I still can’t figure it out. I’ve been looking everywhere, handing out flyers.”

The father wiped away tears as he said he had been looking for his son for a month.

“I’m just trying to keep up hope,” the dad said.

The United Cajun Navy said it had received a huge amount of donations, including equipment and food, to aid in the search for Sebastian.

However, due to unsafe weather conditions in the area, the planned rallying point in Hendersonville has been suspended for Tuesday.

“We’re still mobilizing and coordinating behind the scenes but UCN will not be at 90 Volunteer Drive today, so please hold donations for the time being. Thank you for understanding!” Riley Lively, a UCN organiser, said on Facebook.

The mother of an autistic boy missing in Tennessee says she believes someone must have her son, after four weeks of searching.

Katie Proudfoot told Crime Stories with Nancy Grace that she couldn’t understand how Sebastian Rogers, who is 15, couldn’t have been found yet otherwise.

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According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, who are leading the search, many areas were searched at least twice in the first few days following Sebastian’s disappearance.

“Sebastian’s residence, the yard, the house, the vehicles, have all been searched multiple times. The neighbourhood where Sebastian lives has been canvassed,” the TBI said in an update. “Neighbors’ houses have been searched. Sebastian is autistic, and his family says he is drawn to water.

“Pools in the neighbourhood were searched. Dive teams were brought in, and bodies of water around the neighbourhood and beyond that area were searched, including caves.”

The TBI said nothing so far from security camera footage had been useful, but that all tips were being investigated.

The volunteer-led group the United Cajun Navy announced on Saturday that it was sending a team to help with the search for Sebastian.

David Flagg, the national director of operations for the volunteer organisation, said at a briefing in Nashville that he could not share too much on the active investigation.

“First and foremost, we’d like to see Sebastian found safe and sound,” Mr Flagg told WKRN. “I think everybody’s hoping, that’s always our hope, is to find, regardless of what the evidence and circumstances might point to the contrary, our hope — and we always hold onto that hope until we find out we can’t anymore — that that person will be found safe and sound, returned to their family.”

The group was organising supplies and volunteers in Hendersonville on Monday, with searches planned to start in the coming days.