100+ motorcycles and Jeeps participate in ‘Ride for Sebastian’ in Sumner County
SUMNER COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — Jeeps and motorcycles revved through Hendersonville Sunday afternoon, working to make sure efforts to find missing 15-year-old Sebastian Rogers don’t go silent.
“Sebastian Wayne Drake Rogers is out there somewhere, and my goal is to find him,” the teen’s father, Seth Rogers, said.
It’s been nearly three months since Sebastian was last seen at his mother and stepfather’s home, just around the corner from where he attended classes at Beech High School. For Sebastian’s father, the last 12 weeks have felt like a real-life nightmare.
“If I get sleep, I have dreams of my son. When I wake up, he’s not here,” Seth said.
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Chris Hewlett with the 615 Boyz Motorcycle Club recalled meeting Seth several months ago in a field, feeling drawn to help search with his own son in mind.
“He went to Beech High School; he lived right there, less than a half a mile from here, just like Sebastian,” Hewlett said. “My son’s autistic, just like Sebastian, and if I show you a picture of my son, he looks a lot like Sebastian, and it hit home. I told my wife, I said, ‘This could have been my son, just as easy.'”
Hewlett said in a matter of roughly two weeks, he gained the support of many wanting to join in the ride to help keep Sebastian’s case alive.
“It blew up absolutely almost overnight, that we were scrambling, wasn’t ready,” Hewlett laughed. “We had people calling us: ‘Hey, I’m bringing so and so’s crew with us’…I couldn’t tell you how many nights I sat in my living room, just overwhelmed by the support.”
The event on Sunday, May 19 saw turnout from bikers who came from as far as Texas and California, along with others who requested the ride be livestreamed so they could watch from Ireland and Australia.
Wherever Sebastian might be, Seth wants him to know about the army of people still out looking for him.
“It gives me hope that my son’s case isn’t going to become a cold case,” Seth said.
Seth recently drove to North Carolina to follow up on a tip about a possible sighting of Sebastian. Although the tip did not pan out to be him, Seth said it gave him hope.
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Sebastian Wayne Drake Rogers, 15, was reported missing on Monday, Feb. 26 from the Beech area in Hendersonville.
Sebastian Rogers: Description
Sebastian is 5 feet, 5 inches tall, 120 pounds with dirty blond hair. He was last seen on Monday, Feb. 26 near Stafford Court wearing a black sweatshirt and black sweatpants, said the TBI.
AMBER Alert Issued
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) originally issued an Endangered Child Alert for Sebastian on the morning of Feb. 26 as multiple agencies took to the area to look for him.
Based on additional investigative information developed during the search, the TBI issued an AMBER Alert for Sebastian on the afternoon of Feb. 27. An AMBER Alert is issued when there is reasonable belief by law enforcement that an abduction has occurred and the child is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death, per the DOJ.
Multiple agencies including the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Tennessee Highway Patrol, Nashville Fire Department, City of Hendersonville’s first responders, Sumner County Sheriff’s Office and Shackle Island Volunteer Fire have assisted in the search for Sebastian.
Who to Contact
If you have seen Sebastian or have info about his whereabouts, call the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office at (615) 451-3838 or TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND.
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