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Child taken from St. Louis Children's Hospital located near Chicago

Updated at 4:25 am on Wednesday, April 25

A 5-year-old Kansas City boy taken yesterday from St. Louis Children's Hospital has been located near Chicago.

Illinois state troopers located Porter Stone, his father Jeffrey Stone, and his paternal grandmother Rhonda Marie Matthews in Alsip, Ill. Both adults are in custody on felony charges of kidnapping, interfering with custody, and endangering the welfare of a child.

33-year-old Jeffery Stone drove off with Porter on Tuesday afternoon shortly after the boy was discharged from Children's, where he was being treated for a heart condition known as cardiomyopathy. Porter is on the list to receive a heart transplant. He's been taken to a hospital near Alsip for evaluation.

The AMBER alert has been canceled.

Updated at 9:15 pm Tuesday - The AMBER Alert system has been activated for Porter Stone. 

Our earlier story:

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department has issued a SARAA alert for a  5-year-old boy who's next on the list to receive a heart transplant.

According to the department's Facebook page, Porter Stone was discharged from St. Louis  Children's Hospital, where he was being treated for a heart condition, around 3:50 this afternoon. Porter and his father, Jeffery Stone, left to go get the family's car when Jeffery Stone called Porter's mother to say he was leaving with the child. Porter Stone had been discharged to be monitored at hospitals closer to his Kansas City-area home.

An earlier report said Jeffery Stone had legal custody of Porter and the SARAA alert was issued because of Porter's medical condition, but later stories say Porter's mother, Tiffany Stone, has sole legal custody.

St. Louis Children's Hospital's chief medical officer, F. Sessions Cole, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he believes Jeffery Stone has enough medicine for his son for 24 hours, but that Porter needs a continuous dose of a required drug in the next 48 hours.

Porter Stone is  almost four feet tall and weighs 44 pounds. He was last seen wearing a grey T-shirt, black and while plaid shorts, and Spiderman tennis shoes. He's carrying a backpack that contains medical equipment.

Jeffery Stone is a 33-year-old white male, 6'6" tall and 230 pounds with a shaved head. He was last seen wearing a grey shirt, black shorts and a San Francisco Giants baseball cap. Jeffery is carrying a Nike backpack.

Jeffery and Porter are believed to be traveling with Jeffery's mother, 59-year-old Rhonda Marie Matthews. Matthews is 5'3" and 130 pounds, with short reddish-brown hair. She was last seen wearing blue jeans and a black Nike jacket.

The three are believed to be traveling in a silver or black 4-door Toyota Corolla with California license plates 6BMU445.

Anyone with information is asked to call 911.

 

Rachel is the justice correspondent at St. Louis Public Radio.