Teens missing from Fremont school for deaf and blind found with family in Napa
By MARSHA DORGAN
Register Staff Writer
Two deaf teens who disappeared Tuesday from a school for the deaf and blind in Fremont were found unharmed in Napa on Wednesday.
The boys, 15 and 16, were discovered missing from the California School for the Deaf and Blind around 8:30 p.m., after a group returned from a field trip. A school counselor told authorities one of the boys had threatened a teacher, leading to a confrontation of some sort.
The 15-year-old boy, whose family lives in Napa, was found Tuesday night at his parents’ Napa home. The other student, John Lavrentjev, was found early Wednesday morning walking on Imola Street, near the South Napa Marketplace, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Paul Cheever. CHP did not release the name of the Napa teen.
Cheever said he, along with two other CHP officers from the Hayward office, came to Napa Wednesday morning. They talked to the 15-year-old boy, who took them to where he last saw Lavrentjev.
“He took us to Soscol and Imola avenues. We found the other boy walking down the street not far from where the 15-year-old boy said he last saw him,” Cheever said. “At this time we don’t know where he spent the night.”
Cheever said the boys left the Fremont school and took BART and buses to get to Napa. “They were headed to Napa when they left the school,” he said.
Lavrentjev’s family lives in Modesto.
When staff from the school realized the boys were missing, they notified authorities. The Alameda County Sheriff’s Department, Fremont police and firefighters, school personnel, two rescue dogs and two helicopters searched the area.
The CHP also joined in the search by issuing Amber Alerts along the Interstate.
The boys were returned to the school on Wednesday. The school is closing for the holiday break, and they will be staying with their families, Cheever said.
The events prior to the students leaving the school are still under investigation.
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