Mom, Boyfriend of Missing Boy Face Charges Over 'Boot Camp' to Curb 'Bad Behavior'

31-year-old Katrina Baur and 39-year-old Jesse Vang, her boyfriend, were both formally charged this week. Baur faces a count of felony child neglect as party to a crime, as well as two counts of misdemeanor obstruction of an officer, while Vang was charged with felony child neglect.

The investigation into missing Elijah Vue, Katrina's son, began last Tuesday when Vang called police in Two Rivers, WI saying he had fallen asleep watching the boy. When he awoke, said Vang, the child was gone.

In interviews with police, Vang allegedly said he had been trying to help his girlfriend "correct" the boy's "bad behaviors." The child had been with him for about a week when he disappeared, with Vang saying Elijah was staying with him "'as punishment' for his bad behavior." Per the criminal complaint, he also said the child is "afraid" of him, before correcting himself to say the boy "respects me."

"They were trying to teach him how to be good here and good at home. Vang indicated that he is trying to make him understand that 'going home is like a privilege for him," read the docs. "Vang reported that victim was in 'time out' for the majority of this time with Vang as it was intended as a form of 'boot camp.'"

Baur allegedly told detectives that Vang was "the enforcer of rules in the relationship" and the two discussed "the limits of what discipline she did not want used" when her son stayed with him. Per the docs, she said they first discussed her son's behavior around Thanksgiving 2023 and while the boy had gone to Vang's for the so-called "boot camp" previously, this was the longest stretch he was there without her being around.

Vang allegedly told detectives he used time outs as discipline -- where the boy had to stand anywhere from 1-3 hours at a time, while "required to pray or say, 'I'm sorry mommy.' According to complaint, he also said he made the child stand "for probably 2 to 3 hours" the night before the disappearance, telling authorities that if the boy tried to sit down, he'd threaten him with "cold water." Vang allegedly added, "He's fine, it's not like his knees are shaking and about to fall over you know."

No specific bad behavior was detailed by either Vang or Baur, other than the boyfriend saying the boy was "getting into things."

Per the docs, on the morning of his disappearance, Vang said the two ate cereal together -- without milk -- before he made the child "stand and pray near the foot" of his bed. After going into the bedroom around 8am that morning, Vang said he shut the door and fell asleep, only to wake up three hours later and find Elijah gone.

"While Vang was sleeping he would lock the door to the apartment at the door knob, dead bolt, and with a security chain attached at the top of the door to keep victim from walking out of the apartment," said police in the complaint.

A statewide Amber Alert was put into effect last week, with boats, K-9 units, dive teams and more all being used to try and find Elijah; he's still missing.

Both Vang and Baur are being held on bond in the Manitowoc County Jail, with a preliminary hearing set for March 7.