UPDATE: June 19, 2025 1604
The family of Gavin Brady says that he has been located and is safe.
[EDITOR’S NOTE: This is a developing story. More information will be posted as soon as it is available.]
[UPDATE: June 19, 2025 1522]
WOKV has received the following response from the Duval Youth Academy President and CEO Jason Crews:
A statement from Duval Academy President/CEO, Jason Crews:
“On the evening of May 26, two sprinklers were intentionally discharged at Duval Academy prompting evacuation and response by the local fire department. During the second incident, an exterior door with access to the rec yard was left open by supervising personnel cleaning up water. At approximately 11:51 p.m., a power outage caused Duval’s camera system to go offline for six minutes. It is believed that during this time, two youth exited through the unsecured door and climbed rec yard wall.
“The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office was notified immediately. They attempted to track the youth using canines before losing their scent in a nearby church parking lot. Since this incident, one youth has been located and is back in detention. The location of the other youth remains unknown. Supervising personnel and administrative staff onsite at Duval during this incident have been terminated or resigned.
“Duval Academy leadership remains in full cooperation and communication with the Department of Juvenile Justice and Sheriff’s Office with respect to their active investigations.”
ORIGINAL STORY: June 19, 2025 0908am
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - An Okaloosa County family wants answers after being told their 17-year-old “escaped” from Jacksonville’s Duval Youth Academy.
Michael and Kristina Brady say they were called several hours after their eldest son, Gavin Brady, went missing from the residential facility on Memorial Day, May 26, 2025.
[Photo Credit: Kristina Brady]
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Kristina says that she has been “totally devastated and a emotional wreck since my son went missing from this place...” She and Gavin’s father, Michael, says they are trying to find their son on their own “because no one else is looking for him.”
[Photo Courtesy: Kristina Brady]
WOKV reached out to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office requesting information regarding one of the individuals and were told that there was no missing person report listed for that individual.
WOKV did, however, find a missing person profile online for Gavin. In the online posting, available to the public as well as law enforcement, he was incorrectly identified as a male of Asian or Pacific Islander descent, weighing 200 pounds.
[Photo Credit: Kristina Brady]
Gavin Brady, however, is approximately 6′1″, weighs about 150 pounds, and is not of Asian or Pacific Island descent.
[UPPER and LOWER PHOTOS: Photos Courtesy: Kristina Brady]
The family says that Gavin may be travelling with another juvenile and may be headed toward Mississippi.
WOKV reached out to the Duval Youth Academy on June 18, 2025 and has not received a response as of this posting.
Anyone with information that may be helpful to police is asked to contact 911.
WOKV
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