NEW YORK (WABC) — The disappearance of a 15-year-old boy from Long Island, who has been missing for more than two weeks, is not believed to be criminal in nature, according to officials
Suffolk County Police said Thomas Medlin left the Stony Brook School on Friday, January 9, around 3:30 p.m. and got onto a train to New York City.
He was last seen at Grand Central Station in Manhattan around 5:30 p.m. the same day, according to police.
On Wednesday, police provided an update. Following an investigation, including extensive video canvassing and review of digital evidence, police determined Medlin’s last known location was on the pedestrian walkway on the Manhattan Bridge on January 9 at 7:06 p.m., and the last activity on his cellphone was three minutes later at 7:09 p.m. They say a nearby camera captured a splash in the water one minute later.
Detectives say Medlin was never seen leaving the bridge via path exits.
Initially, there had been reports that Medlin was meeting someone he had met on Roblox.
However, police on Wednesday said there is “no indication of criminal activity.”
“Detectives have continuously communicated the department’s findings to Medlin’s family. The department is continuing to work with its law enforcement partners to bring closure to the family,” Suffolk County Police said in a statement.
A new witness account has added a layer of unease to the ongoing investigation into the disappearance of 15-year-old Thomas Medlin from Saint James, Long Island, on January 9, 2026. The testimony, now incorporated into the official record by Suffolk County Police, describes the teen on the Manhattan Bridge’s pedestrian walkway appearing hesitant and possibly fearful. The witness—a public transport user who contacted authorities days after the incident—noted that Thomas was “walking and seemed afraid of something,” constantly checking his phone and even detouring into a nearby shop to purchase something instead of proceeding straight across the bridge.
This observation, reported in emerging details from sources close to the case (including social media posts referencing police contacts and news aggregators), contrasts with the stark surveillance timeline. Video footage places Thomas on the elevated pedestrian path at 7:06 p.m., where he appeared to be pacing or walking alone. His phone showed its last activity at 7:09 p.m.—an abrupt mid-session cutoff forensic experts link to sudden disabling, such as water immersion. At 7:10 p.m., a camera captured a significant splash in the East River below. Thomas was never recorded exiting via any pedestrian paths on the Manhattan or Brooklyn sides.
The witness’s description of hesitation—frequent phone checks (potentially awaiting the confirmatory message “I’ll be there.” that led him to believe he was meeting someone) and the brief shop stop—suggests uncertainty or anxiety in those final moments. Rather than a purposeful crossing, his behavior appeared erratic: pausing, looking around, and deviating from a direct route. This could indicate he was waiting for someone, second-guessing his location, or feeling uneasy in the isolated dusk setting of the bridge over icy waters.
Police have not publicly detailed the witness’s identity or exact shop (possibly a convenience store or vendor near the bridge entrances in Lower Manhattan), but the account has been formally documented amid extensive video canvassing, digital forensics, and subpoenas for additional records. It bolsters the theory of a sudden, unforeseen event during the critical 3- to 4-minute window, with no evidence of criminal activity disclosed.
Compounding the tragedy, marine units continue focused searches in a 1.2-mile stretch of the East River after recovering an item consistent with Thomas’s clothing less than 400 yards from the bridge—likely carried by currents from the splash site. Winter conditions hinder progress, but authorities remain committed to closure for the family.
Thomas, a student at The Stony Brook School, left campus around 3:30 p.m. that Friday to catch a train to Grand Central Terminal, arriving about 5:30 p.m. Early family mentions of a possible Roblox-related meetup were ruled out by detectives after thorough digital review. His parents, Eva Yan and James Medlin, have shared ongoing pleas for information, emphasizing their love and assurance that he’s “not in trouble” if he can return.
The witness’s words—“seemed afraid of something”—humanize the final glimpses of a teen who ventured into the city expecting connection but may have encountered isolation or distress instead. On the bridge that evening, hesitation and phone checks painted a picture of a boy possibly overwhelmed, waiting for reassurance that never fully materialized. As the search persists and evidence accumulates (sighting, phone death, splash, clothing recovery, now this behavioral insight), the case underscores the vulnerability of youth in unfamiliar urban spaces and the heartbreak of unanswered minutes.
