Medina man claiming to be missing Illinois boy has criminal background; just released from prison in March

CLEVELAND, OH (WOIO) - The person found in a northern Kentucky neighborhood this week is not Timmothy Pitzen, according to FBI Louisville, instead it’s a 23-year-old Medina man with a criminal history, according to officials.

The person claiming to be Pitzen is actually Brian Michael Rini, according to Newport Police.

Pitzen is a missing child out of the Chicago area. He was reported missing May 12, 2011 when he was 6 years old.

The boy’s mother, Amy Fry-Pitzen, was found dead in a Rockford, Ill. hotel room after committing suicide at the time her son was reported missing.

A check on Michael Rini shows a history of run-ins with the law.

Michael Rini appeared in Medina court on Jan. 18, 2018. The court found him guilty of burglary, a third-degree felony and guilty of vandalism, a fifth-degree felony.

Rini was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

At that time the court ordered him to submit a DNA sample. Records at the Ohio Department of Correction state he was released from prison March 7, 2019.

Rini’s record shows a history of criminal cases dating back to October 2013.

Rini appeared for a probation violation hearing on Jan. 17, 2017. Court documents indicate Rini pleaded guilty for passing bad checks and was sentenced to three years of community control.

He served 55 days in the Medina County Jail.

Medina County Court documents for a Brian Rini living in Seville, lists case charges that include burglary and vandalism.

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