A family has issued an urgent warning after their 11-year-old son managed to book a ride to the airport on his own, leaving his parents in what they described as a state of panic.
Jamel Johnson, 11, was discovered by himself at John F. Kennedy International Airport after traveling there from his Valley Stream, Long Island home in an Uber during the early morning hours on Sunday, June 29, 2026.
According to News 12, the child was spotted by airport staff standing in the TSA line at Terminal 1 around 6:30am. Police later took him to their post, where emergency responders checked him over and found he was fine before he was sent home.
His parents are now speaking out, saying the situation could have ended far worse. They are questioning how Jamel, who has autism, was able to ride alone despite Uber’s rules stating that minors must be accompanied by an adult unless they are part of an approved teen account. Uber’s teen service is only available to users ages 13 to 17, with a parent or guardian’s permission.
Security footage from the family’s home shows Jamel leaving through the garden path with a small suitcase before getting into a large black vehicle that then drove off.
Jamel’s mother, Tenesha Johnson, described the fear of waking up and realizing her son was no longer in the house.
“It was a feeling I wouldn’t want any other mother, father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle to ever experience,” she told News 12. “I didn’t know what was happening. I didn’t know where my son was.”
Jamel’s father, who is also named Jamel, recalled the family’s reaction as they tried to understand what had happened.
“We’re literally in frantic mode at that point.”
Tenesha said she could not understand why a driver would allow such a young child into the car alone.
“He looks like a child,” she said. “Why would you get let him get in your car and pull off?”
After returning home, Jamel said he had been trying to get to Japan, but was unable to move beyond TSA because he did not have a ticket.
His father said the family now wants to use the experience to alert other parents, especially those with children on the autism spectrum, to how easily something similar could happen.
“It is really about getting the awareness of any family that has a child on the spectrum,” he said.
“This could happen to you. And Uber itself needs to be more mindful of not just allowing anyone to get into their vehicles.”
The Port Authority also confirmed the incident in a statement to News 12, saying staff located Jamel at Terminal 1 at around 6.30am.
The incident comes as Uber continues to market its teen service as the proper way for families with older children to use the app. Under the company’s current guidance, riders under 18 must be accompanied by an adult unless they are using a teen account, and drivers can report or cancel rides if they believe a passenger is an unaccompanied minor. The Johnson family says they are now in contact with Uber’s Trust and Safety team as they seek answers.