Sanford girl is safe after Amber Alert; father charged with murder of wife

Riley Harper Bockes, 3, was found safe in Murfreesboro, Tenn., on Wednesday night after she was the subject of an Amber Alert.

Riley was abducted from the 3000 block of Lee Avenue in Sanford, authorities said. Her mother, Deanna Michelle Bockes, was found dead inside the same home during a welfare check. That death was being investigated as a homicide, according to Sanford police.

Around 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Rutherford County's Sheriff's Office in Tennessee found a stolen car that was involved in a crash on Interstate 24 in Murfreesboro. Authorities said Brent James Bockes, Riley's father, had her in that vehicle and the pair ran from the scene of the crash.

A search was then conducted, and Brent James Bockes was taken into custody at a motel in Murfreesboro. He was charged with first-degree murder, robbery and larceny of a motor vehicle in connection to the death of Deanna Bockes.

Deana and Brent Bockes were married, according to officials.

Court records showed Brent Bockes had been charged with assault by strangulation, assault on a female and misdemeanor child abuse in March of 2021.

Bockes was found guilty of assault on a female, records showed, and the assault by strangulation and misdemeanor child abuse charges were voluntarily dismissed. A reason for the dismissal was not shown in court records.

Bockes also has 14 pending charges and court dates in two counties, including allegations of drinking and driving, resisting arrest and misdemeanor child abuse.

He was brought back to North Carolina from Tennessee on Jan. 13 and was turned over to Sanford police. Bockes was taken before a Lee County Magistrate, where he was placed in the Lee County Jail under no bond.

He will appear in court Jan. 14.