Bronx mother says 4-year-old son was missing for 2 hours after wandering away from preschool undetected
NEW YORK -- A Bronx mother is breathing a sigh of relief after her 4-year-old son who went missing while at preschool was found safe.
Farjahan Akter held her son Zion a bit tighter after a big scare while trying to pick him up from preschool on Tuesday.
"The teacher looked at me and said that, 'You already picked him up.' And I said no," Akter told CBS2's Alecia Reid.
Then, she says the school said her husband picked her son up, and that's when panic set in.
"The teacher was talking to other parents during the dismissal and he just walked," Akter said.
She then called 911.
"When the cops came in, they checked the video cameras, and the school videos wasn't working," she said.
Zion's mom searched frantically. He crossed not one, but two intersections. It was blocks away where she spotted the good Samaritans that rescued her son from the roadway.
"He could've got hit by a car. I would like to thank those three angels, it was two men and one young lady," Akter said.
The preschooler has scratches on his arm and leg but is otherwise OK.
The early childhood program at the Santa Maria School is regulated by the Department of Health. In a letter to parents Wednesday night, the principal says the school was inspected and they are now "awaiting the order from the DOH as to next steps, including a potential temporary closing."
After searching for two hours, where Akter says she felt alone, she no longer feels comfortable keeping her son at the school.
"I could've lose him yesterday," she said.
The principal apologized and says there will be a complete investigation of the actions taken while Zion went missing. Programs at the school that require midday pickups will be closed Thursday.
