Family searches for boy

An Odessa family is looking for a 12-year-old boy last seen Friday at Music City Mall.

Joe Daniel Hernandez was last seen wearing a burgundy hooded sweatshirt, yellow shirt and jean shorts.

Odessa police are classifying Joe Daniel Hernandez as a runaway rather than a missing person because he left on his own after being told not to go somewhere, Cpl. Sherrie Carruth said.

Carruth said by the age of 12 a child would typically have the "smarts" to decide if he wants to run away or not.

"Nowhere does it show that someone drug him out of the mall or someone lured him out of the mall," she said.

But Daniela Hernandez, Joe's sister, said the family considers him to be missing, not a runaway.

"We don't know what happened to him," she said. "We haven't seen or heard from him since Friday."

Daniela Hernandez said Joe had no reason to run away.

"Usually when he goes to the mall, he would call and tell us where he is at," she said.

Hernandez is 5-feet, 5-inches tall with brown hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information on his whereabouts can call 631-4054, 202-4210, 260-3025 or 661-6344.