A Philly student with autism is missing after running away from school 12 days ago

Rocquel Jones is sick with fear for her son, Kyle, a 19-year-old with a warm smile. He has autism, speech issues, and anxiety. He’s 6 feet tall, 190 pounds, but in many ways has the openness of a child.

He ran away from his Philadelphia high school 12 days ago and no one knows where he went.

“He’s very trusting, easy to try to start a conversation,” Jones said of her son. “He’s very friendly, and that’s the part that scares me.”

On Sept. 28, Jones took her son from their home in Port Richmond to Kensington High School for the Creative and Performing Arts via the El. Shortly after arriving at school, Kyle put his hands on another student — the first altercation he’s ever been in, Jones said.

Jones still doesn’t know what sparked the conflict because of what happened next: Kyle paced the vestibule, pushed open the school’s doors and walked onto North Front Street. He left the school, which is close to the Berks Street El station, shortly after 8 a.m and has not been seen since. His mother worries about what he was thinking when he walked through the doors and where he went.

“When Kyle’s upset, it’s really hard to calm him down,” Jones said. “I don’t know how his emotional state was. I just know I haven’t seen him.”

Jones was not informed her son had left the school until about an hour after a staffer watched him walk out, she said. That staffer called her just after 9 a.m., she said.

The staffer said he had told Kyle to stay outside an office while he called Jones after the altercation, she recalled. Jones suspects Kyle likely grew upset because he thought he was in a lot of trouble.

Jones, who was aghast, said that written into Kyle’s individualized education plan — the federal document that all students with special needs have — were clear notes that he was a risk for escaping from buildings.

“Everybody was well aware of the [risk]” said Jones. “He was supposed to have a one-on-one aide, but I was told he was too old. He is not to be left alone.”

Jones said she asked the staffer why Kyle was not stopped from leaving.

“He said, ‘It’s not that type of school that stopped that type of student, it’s against the law,’” said Jones, who rushed to KCAPA when she finished dropping her other children at their respective schools and, ultimately, filed a police report that afternoon.

A school district spokesperson declined to comment on the specifics of the matter because it involved protected student information but noted that officials have been working with the Philadelphia Police Department and other agencies to support the investigation.

“Our hearts are with the family and friends of the student and we are confident that authorities are working diligently to find this student so they can be safely returned soon,” spokesperson Christina Clark said.

Police have labeled Kyle a “missing endangered person” and are now looking for him alongside Jones and many family members. She’s poring through social media, trying every avenue she can think of.

This isn’t the first time Kyle encountered school-related trauma. In April, a bus driver dropped Kyle off at the wrong stop, Jones said, and he was missing for three days. He was locked in a cage, hit and sexually assaulted.

That time, Jones said, a man and woman approached him and told him his mother said Kyle was supposed to go with them.

Kyle has a cell phone, but it appears to be off; Jones is frustrated and struggling to get answers from authorities, she said.

“It’s been 11 days, and he’s still not home,” said Jones.

And as the days tick by, Jones said her worries mount.

She and her family continue to search for Kyle.

“Everybody is upset, but nobody can sit around and cry,” she said. “Crying is not getting us no answers.”

Kyle has black hair and brown eyes. He wearing a burgundy sweat jacket, black Adidas pants and white sneakers the day he disappeared. Police have asked anyone with information to call East Detectives at 215-686-3243, or to dial 911.