PEORIA, AZ (3TV / CBS 5) – Police say they caught the man who allegedly abducted his boy from his mother in Peoria.

Officials spotted Eric Maes in Phoenix near 23rd Avenue and Cactus Road around 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday. The authorities had been looking for him since Tuesday evening. Officers say they tried to speak to Maes but he ran away. Phoenix City Park Rangers and Peoria Police assisted the Phoenix Police in searching the area. Maes was found and taken into custody in a wash / canal near 23rd Avenue and Thunderbird Road. He was then taken to the Peoria Police Department Headquarters. He is booked for manslaughter in 4th Avenue prison, police said.

UPDATE: Eric Maes has been taken into custody. Thank you to everyone who shared this post and helped it find it. #peoriapdaz #peoriaaz #peoriapoliceaz

– Peoria Police (AZ) (@PeoriaPoliceAZ) February 10, 2021

The child was eventually brought to safety, but his mother died trying to prevent the kidnapping.

According to police, 30-year-old Brittany Walker-Martie from Phoenix loaded her 10-month-old son Abel Maes into a vehicle near 91st Avenue and Deer Valley Road around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. The baby’s father, Maes of Sun City, showed up and stole the car while the boy was still inside, police said.

Two previous mug shots of Eric Maes, the man the police are looking for who is accused of abducting his child from Peoria Tuesday night.

(Source: Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)

Callers flooded 911 and reported that a woman was sitting on a car that according to Sgt. Amanda Gaines of the Peoria Police Department. Officials located Walker-Martie, who had life-threatening injuries when he was thrown from the car.

“There were police cars blocking the street here, tape directly across the street,” said Christine Andert, who lives near the place where Walker-Martie was thrown. “Getting out of the car and seeing all the cars and people, but it was incredibly quiet. I get chills and goose bumps – it was quiet, that’s the only way I can describe it.”

Investigators were able to speak to Walker-Martie shortly before the operation, Gaines said. Walker-Martie died during the operation.

“I was told he was weaving his way in and out of traffic and she just held on until she couldn’t go on,” said Juliann Davis, Walker’s cousin. Davis says Walker tried to break away from the abusive relationship over the past year.

“This was a sick person who had substance abuse problems in and out of rehab,” says Davis.

Maes dropped the vehicle and was last seen running with the baby in the 25th Avenue area and Cactus Road area of ​​Phoenix. Just before midnight, an Amber Alert was activated in the hopes that the public could locate Maes and Abel.

At around 1 a.m., the Phoenix Fire Department responded to a report from an abandoned child. The police confirmed that this child is Abel. He was not injured and the Amber Alert was canceled just before 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

Fast facts

Police say Eric Maes stole a vehicle with his 10-month-old son Abel. He has no custody of Abel.

Abel’s mother, Brittany Walker-Martie, was holding onto the car as it drove away. She was thrown off and died in the hospital.

Abel was found safe and the Amber Alert issued to him was canceled.

Police said they found Maes on Wednesday.

Police said Wednesday afternoon that they found Maes but didn’t say where or how they tracked him down.

At this point, investigators have no clear picture of what happened before Maes allegedly stole Abel’s car.

Jessica Yungkans says her cousin’s focus was on her two children. Walker sobered up, did a good job, and was preparing to move into her own home. Yungkans says the family will make sure Abel knows how much his mother loved him.

“So many pictures, so many home videos,” says Yungkans. “He will see them all. He will be showered with so much love.”

Brittany Walker-Martie and her two children.

(Source: Facebook)

“We have one side of a story, but a very short part of a story,” said Gaines on Wednesday morning. “We don’t really know why everyone was in this area. And we don’t know why specifically Eric was in that area, so we’d really like to talk to him.”

UPDATE: AMBER alarm canceled – child found SafeAbel Maes has been found and is safe. Eric Maes is still pending and is considered dangerous. Anyone who sees Eric or has information about his location is asked to contact @PeoriaPoliceAZ https://t.co/XMBgFeJO4r pic.twitter.com/lowMy3BfpY

– Peoria Police (AZ) (@PeoriaPoliceAZ) February 10, 2021

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