Authorities say the 7-year-old was taken at gunpoint and found safe about a day later.
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — A 14-year-old Milwaukee boy accused of orchestrating a summer kidnapping that triggered a citywide AMBER Alert is now charged as an adult, prosecutors said Monday. The child, age 7, was abducted in July near North 61st and Hustis streets and recovered unharmed roughly 24 hours later.
Prosecutors named the teen as Barry Coleman and said he directed the abduction, which investigators allege began as a plan to rob the child’s mother. The case has moved from juvenile to adult court, with a commissioner setting cash bond at $100,000. Two men previously charged in the same plot remain in adult court. Monday’s filing marks the third and final suspect now charged, bringing the summer case back into public view and raising new questions about youth involvement in violent crimes and how the courts handle those accused at a young age.
According to criminal filings, the July abduction unfolded when a vehicle pulled up near the family home and two people with guns jumped out. One chased the boy’s father; the other grabbed the child and carried him into the vehicle. Investigators say the child was held overnight at a house several miles away while the group tried to leverage the crime for money. “This is the last leg of one of the biggest crimes that allegedly occurred this summer,” Court Commissioner Barry Phillips said during a brief hearing, adding that for 24 hours the city felt “held hostage.” Phillips said he matched the $100,000 bond to the ransom amount allegedly discussed by the group.
The complaint lists charges against Coleman including kidnapping as party to a crime with use of a dangerous weapon, taking hostages, possession of a firearm by an adjudicated delinquent, and possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor. Prosecutor Janette Corbett called the case “really a horrifying event” and told the court Coleman had recently been released to a residential treatment program tied to a heroin case when the kidnapping occurred. Investigators say Coleman described the boy’s mother as a “big-time drug dealer” and that what began as a robbery plan escalated when he seized the child at gunpoint. The child was located about a day later and taken for evaluation.
Records show the two adult co-defendants are 25-year-old Corey Williams and 38-year-old Fabian Johnson, who were charged earlier in the investigation. Both cases are moving through Milwaukee County Circuit Court. A recorded jail phone call between Coleman and his father, who is incarcerated, is among the items investigators say detail the teen’s role in planning the abduction and attempting to arrange payment. Authorities say the getaway vehicle and a doorbell camera video capturing the snatch helped piece together the sequence and identify suspects.
Police initially issued an AMBER Alert after the abduction was reported, launching a search that spanned city neighborhoods. The child was found safe about a day later in a house on Milwaukee’s North Side, approximately seven miles from where he disappeared. The neighborhood where the boy was taken has seen periodic spikes in gun crime, and the case drew attention in mid-July when home surveillance video of the grab circulated widely online, showing two people jumping from a vehicle and seizing the child as he rode a bike.
With the teen now in adult court, Coleman’s preliminary hearing is set for Monday, Dec. 8. Prosecutors say they will continue coordinating discovery across the related cases against Williams and Johnson. If the case advances past the preliminary hearing, attorneys could argue pretrial motions on surveillance video, phone records, and statements. Any trial date would be set after arraignment. For now, bond remains at $100,000, and Coleman is being held in secure custody.
Outside the courtroom, relatives and neighbors expressed relief the child was not physically harmed and frustration the case took months to reach this point. “Kids ride their bikes on that block every day,” one neighbor said, describing the July scene as “terrifying.” A family friend who helped pass out flyers during the search recalled the overnight wait as “the longest hours” of the summer. The prosecutor reiterated that the child continues to have support and follow-up care.
The investigation remains open as the adult co-defendants’ cases proceed. Coleman’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 8 in Milwaukee County. Further court dates for the adults are expected later in December, according to court officials.
Author note: Last updated December 2, 2025.