Julie, although a bit hesitant, agreed. They boy hurried to pack his things into his favorite tote bag and put on his favorite hat, an Eastern Airlines baseball cap. Julie gave his son a $1 bill, which he planned to buy a soda while on his way to school. It was the last time Julie saw Etan. Later, after calling around to know why her son had not been back, she learned that the boy didn’t make it to school.

An investigation was immediately launched. The boy’s photos and details were also placed on milk cartons, making him the first ever missing person to be posted on the side of a milk carton. Soon, Pedro Hernandez was caught and charged for kidnapping Etan. Hernandez confessed to the abduction and murder of the boy, claiming that the boy was still alive when he put him inside a plastic bag and shoved him inside a box, which he later dumped at the site where authorities found the boy’s body.