This article kind of explains what happened:
“JEFFERSON CITY - The Jefferson City and Columbia police departments said Darnell S. Gray is still missing. Their comments came shortly after Darnell's stepmother, Quatavia Laqwoun, told KOMU 8 News the boy had been found.
Laqwoun also posted on her Facebook page, saying Darnell's father was on his way to Columbia to pick him up.
Family friend Amanda Ramirez said, ‘We celebrated too early.’
Laqwoun's comment
followed several reports that a boy matching Darnell's description had been found walking along Highway 63 in Columbia.
Ramirez said a boy was found, but it was unclear if it was Darnell and his father went to Columbia to see.
The Jefferson City Police Department said later it was not Darnell.”
(BBM)
UPDATE: Police say missing boy not found, despite reports from stepmother
The following comes from FB, so if it violates the TOS, please delete. I just thought I’d post it to help clarify what appears to have happened:
Early in the evening yesterday, a man posted on FB he’d just called 911 after seeing a little boy walking by himself along Old 63. In the same post, he said the boy was wearing a black coat with fur. He also reported there were other drivers who stopped to help the boy.
As this was a public post, the word got to Darnell’s family quickly: In fact, within 13 minutes of the man posting the information, Darnell’s paternal aunt was commenting on the post, asking the gentleman if the boy was carrying a backpack, etc.
Someone asked him if the boy was African American, and the man replied he was.
So it appears this is where the confusion first started.
The man did post the boy was picked up by the Columbia PD, but to the best of my knowledge, they haven’t confirmed or denied it. It would be great if a reporter could get a comment from LE about the situation, but I don’t believe that has happened yet.