An Ohio teenager missing since December 2, 2025, for 263 days was found by U.S. Marshals on August 21 at the home of Jobe Binkley, a former teacher who had been placed on administrative leave and later fired from the Springfield City School District over concerns about his interactions with students. Binkley has been arrested on one count of interference with custody but claims he never taught the missing teen and has pleaded not guilty. Authorities may investigate further charges based on evidence from phone records.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-14,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
An Ohio teenager missing for 263 days since December 2, 2025, was found at the home of a former teacher by agents from the U.S. Marshal’s Office on August 21. The property owner, Jobe Binkley, a 48-year-old and former Springfield City School District employee, has been arrested for interference with custody. Despite previous denials that the teenager was at his residence, she was located there during the most recent visit. Authorities are considering further charges against Binkley based on evidence from cell phone records, as suggested by Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien. Prior to her disappearance, concerns were raised about Binkley’s interactions with students, leading to his administrative leave in November 2024.
Written for “Teen Missing Found Safe” on 2026-09-14,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 8804 · logged 2026-09-14
An Ohio teenager who had been missing for 263 days was found at the home of a former teacher, according to authorities.
uncertain
who → find → authorities
The now-17-year-old vanished on December 2, 2025, sparking a near-nine-month search for the teenager.
asserted
old → vanish → teenager
She was finally found on August 21 when an agent working with the U.S. Marshal’s Office tracked down the girl at an address in Springfield, Clark County.
asserted
agent → find → Springfield
Jobe Binkley, a 48-year-old property owner, has been arrested on one count of interference with custody.
asserted
Binkley → arrest → custody
He has pleaded not guilty to the charge, according to court and jail records obtained by The Independent.
uncertain
He → plead → Independent
Speaking to the officer, Binkley had acknowledged that the girl was inside his property and called for her to come out.
asserted
her → speak → property
During two previous visits, authorities had been refused entry to the address, with Binkley claiming that she was not there, despite being informed that she was a missing person, the records state.
asserted
records → refuse → address
According to personnel files obtained by ABC 6, Binkley is a former teacher who worked with the Springfield City School District.
uncertain
who → accord → District
He was placed on administrative leave back in November 2024 after concerns were raised over his professional interactions with students.
asserted
concerns → place → students
Those claims were ruled to be unsubstantiated by the district, the records indicate, but Binkley was placed on administrative leave again in January 2025.
uncertain
Binkley → rule → January
He was fired in February for violating policy related to the use of technology.
asserted
He → fire → technology
It is not yet clear if Binkley ever taught the teenager.
asserted
Binkley → teach → teenager
The Independent has contacted the Springfield City School District for further comment.
asserted
Independent → contact → comment
Former Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien told ABC 6 that investigators may examine Binkley and the teenager’s cell phones, with the ex-teacher potentially facing additional charges.
uncertain
teacher → tell → charges
“If you have an adult trying to take advantage of a minor, oftentimes, the only charge you might be able to lodge at the outset is an interference with custody,” O’Brien said.
uncertain
O’Brien → have → custody
“Oftentimes, you really need the cooperation of the minor to do that.
asserted
you → need → that
“Sometimes they’re willing to provide that information and other times not.”
asserted
they → ’re → information
A pre-trial hearing for Binkley has been scheduled for later this month.
asserted
hearing → schedule → month
The Independent has contacted Joseph M. Juergens, Binkley’s attorney.
asserted
Independent → contact → Juergens
Danielle Flint, who lives near the home where the teenager was found, told the outlet that she had seen posts on Facebook that suggested the juvenile was at the address.
uncertain
juvenile → live → address
“I’ve tried to peek around here and see if I can catch her, you know, in the back or maybe out of the house at night, but I had never seen her,” Flint said.
asserted
Flint → try → her
“I would literally lose every piece of me if that was one of my girls.”
asserted
that → lose → girls
