CHICAGO _ Police on Monday said the investigation into the disappearance of 5-year-old Andrew "AJ" Freund continues to focus "on the residence and the individuals that may have seen or had contact with the boy."
The boy was reported missing by his parents Thursday morning after he was last seen at bedtime Wednesday night at the family's home in the northwest Chicago suburb of Crystal Lake.
In a news release Monday, police said, "As of today's date, JoAnn Cunningham, the boy's mother, continues to be uncooperative with police. On Saturday afternoon, Andrew Freund, the boy's father, did speak with police detectives." An attorney for Cunningham said Sunday that Cunningham was cooperating, but a news release from the attorney's law firm Monday said she was advised last week to stop communication after it appeared she was a suspect.
Police did not say in their Monday news release who else might have had contact with the boy. The attorney for Cunningham said Sunday that no one else was in the house Wednesday aside from the parents and a younger brother.
Detectives were seen Monday morning on Dole Avenue walking up to neighbors' houses. Asked by a reporter if they could say anything, one detective said, "I'm sorry. I can't."
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services said last week that its involvement with AJ and his family began in 2013 when he was born with opiates in his system, and that the contact continued on and off through the end of 2018. Last week, after the boy was reported missing, DCFS placed his younger brother in another home under a safety plan.
According to the law firm representing the boys' mother, a hearing will be held Tuesday afternoon at the McHenry County courthouse regarding the status of the younger son. In a news release, the firm said, "In connection with such a hearing, we expect to obtain additional information relative to the status of the search for AJ, and on what basis DCFS contends to take (his brother) from his parents' custody."
The news release also said that Cunningham, who is seven months pregnant, is expected to attend the hearing and might speak at a news conference afterward if "she is capable of doing so. JoAnn is emotionally, mentally, and physically fragile after five days with no sign of AJ."
Her attorneys said they expect AJ's father to attend the hearing, but they are not representing him.
Court records indicate the father, Andrew Freund, is 60 and JoAnn Cunningham is 36.
People passed the house throughout the day Monday _ some driving by, some walking their dogs and others riding bikes _ and they've stopped to see the growing memorial outside AJ's home.
Jeannie Brcka drove from nearby Hoffman Estates. She said she and her daughter, Lupe Mercado of East Dundee, have been following the boy's disappearance for the past several days.
"We are just hoping he comes home safely and they get answers soon," Brcka said.
Mercado brought her two young children along. She said her 5-year-old son has been asking a lot of questions about AJ and where he might be.
"We are praying for him and hoping he shows up, or something," Mercado said. "He is asking did (AJ) get to spend Easter with his family." Her son also has said, "If he is lost, where is he?"
Andrew was last seen about 9 p.m. Wednesday in the family home. The boy has blond hair and was wearing a Mario sweatshirt and black sweatpants. He is about 3 feet 5 inches tall and weighs about 70 pounds.
The investigation is ongoing, and no one has been arrested, police said.
After a daylong search Thursday, police in a news release Friday said, "In reviewing all investigative information thus far, there is no indication that would lead police to believe that an abduction had taken place." They also said: "Information obtained currently has police focusing on the residence."
Canine teams that were used during the investigation "only picked up Andrew's scent within the residence indicating that Andrew had not walked away on foot," police said.
Crystal Lake police are working with the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Investigators are continuing to review evidence, leads and tips as they become available, police said.
Police said Monday they had no new information to share but would update the media if there are any developments.
Authorities ask anyone with information to call the Crystal Lake Police Department at 815-356-3620. Anyone with a cellphone who has information regarding the child can send an anonymous tip to the department by texting the word CLPDTIP along with the tip information to 847411 (tip411).
