AMBER Alert issued for 9-year-old North Texas boy who never made it to school, police say

 

Grapevine police said it was searching the neighborhood, surrounding parks and the boy’s route to school.

GRAPEVINE, Texas — A local AMBER Alert, also known as an “Athena Alert,” was issued Wednesday afternoon for a 9-year-old North Texas boy who police say never made it to school in the morning. 

Grapevine police posted a callout on social media asking for public assistance finding Zavien Keyes. According to the Facebook post, family members say Keyes missed the bus Wednesday morning and left home to walk to Glenhope Elementary School, but he never arrived. 

Grapevine police said it was searching the neighborhood, surrounding parks and Keyes’ route to school. They were also looking for any surveillance video in the area that may show which direction he was traveling. 

Shortly after the police department’s social post, a local AMBER Alert was issued for Keyes. 

Keyes is described as a 4-foot, 9-inch Black male, weighs about 90 pounds and was last seen wearing a black shirt with gold Spider Man design, green pants, blue crocs and carrying a light blue backpack. The AMBER Alert says Keyes was last seen at approximately 7 a.m. Wednesday in the 2900 block of Mustang Drive in Grapevine, Texas.

Grapevine police said the department is working closely with Colleyville PD and Grapevine-Colleyville ISD. 

Anyone with information about Keyes’ whereabouts is urged to call 911 or the Grapevine PD non-emergency line at (817)410-8127.

image

What is an Athena Alert?

With the new Athena Alert, a request for an AMBER Alert may be made by a local law enforcement agency that knows a child is missing but has not verified the AMBER Alert criteria, and if the chief law enforcement officer of the local law enforcement agency believes that activation of the alert system is warranted.

The new alert came after the “Athena Alert” bill passed in the legislative session, which honors 7-year-old Athena Strand, who was kidnapped and murdered in Wise County in 2022.

More Texas headlines: