Deering teen who ran away found safe

Police have safely located a North Deering teen who had not been seen since he ran away from home Sunday night.

Vinny Rivard, 14, is back home with his family, a Portland police spokesperson announced shortly after 9 p.m. on Thursday.

Vinny Rivard, 14. Photo courtesy Jenn Macisso

Rivard, 14, had been missing since Sunday evening, when he told his mother, Jenn Macisso, that he was leaving to spend the night with a friend, Macisso told the Press Herald Thursday morning.

When he didn’t check in by Monday evening, Macisso discovered Rivard had never gone to the friend’s home. Instead, he sent friends messages saying he was ditching his phone and running away.

Macisso said it was unlike her son not to check in called the police.

“I feel like he would at least be like, ‘Mom, I’m not coming home, but I’m OK,'” she said Thursday morning.

While family members and Portland and Westbrook police searched for Rivard and talked to his friends, social media posts brought a slew of tips and potential sightings over the course of more than three days.

“Vinny has the biggest heart I’ve ever met,” Macisso said. “He would give anything for his friends and family.”