Tad Cummins and Elizabeth Thomas News: Kidnapped Teen Claims to Be in Love With Abductor
15-year-old Elizabeth Thomas is currently in rehab and is refusing to be reunited with her family in Columbia, Tennessee, insisting that she is a "fully grown woman" who should be entitled to date his suspected abductor and former teacher Tad Cummins.
The 50-year-old married grandfather is currently facing a federal child trafficking charge for grooming and kidnapping his former student.
The teen disappeared from her Tennessee home on March 13, and was later recovered safely on April 20 when the police tracked her and Cummins to a remote cabin 2,500 miles away in northern California.
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According to a report by the Daily Mail, Thomas told her friends that she had the "time of her life" during her 39-day disappearance with Cummins.
"Elizabeth says she's in love with Tad and that the pair of them haven't done anything wrong," a source told the Daily Mail. "She thinks she is a fully grown woman who can date who she likes."
After they were found, Cummins was arrested without a struggle, and Thomas was flown back to Tennessee, where she was placed in a special treatment center for trauma victims. The teen will be receiving expert care "for as long as it takes" for her to realize that she was actually the victim of a predatory older man.
However, Thomas's path toward recovery is further complicated by her turbulent family life, with her parents divorcing and her mother facing charges for abusing her and several of her nine siblings.
"It's a very complex family situation right now," the source explained. "All they can do is stand by her and give her as much help as she needs to come to terms with what really happened."
"At the end of the day we are dealing with a very messed-up kid here," the source added. "Cummins really did a number on her. She was not harmed physically but the mental scars will take years to heal."
Cummins attended his first court appearance on Tuesday, May 9, and during the hearing, he affirmed that he required a public defender because he could not afford to hire a private attorney.
The former teacher faces one count of transporting a minor across state lines with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. He also faces state charges in Maury County, Tennessee, where he allegedly abducted Thomas.
If convicted, Cummins faces a minimum of 10 years to life in prison.
