Inside the terrifying tale of the runaway 16-year-old tech billionaire heir

The runaway child of two tech billionaires, has been found alive in a notoriously crime-ridden area of San Francisco after being first reported missing nearly one week ago.

Mint Butterfield, 16, who uses they/them pronouns, is the only child of two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Slack founder Stewart Butterfield and Flickr founder Caterina Fake.

They vanished from their mother’s home in affluent Bolinas, California, on April 21. After missing posters were distributed across San Francisco, they were found safe nearly a week later on Saturday evening, with an “adult friend” called Christopher “Kio” Dizefalo – a man ten years Butterfield’s senior — in the Tenderloin District, known for being the heart of the city’s fentanyl crisis.

Stewart Butterfield, the billionaire founder of Slack, is Mint Butterfield’s father (Getty Images for WIRED)

Authorities said Christopher Dizefalo and Mint were in a “quasi-relationship,” despite being ten years her senior, according to the New York Post.

Police said earlier in the week that Mint was “at-risk” due to a reported previous threat of suicide.

Butterfield’s parents have now hit out at the “predator” who allegedly coaxed their child into disappearing last week. In an email to the press, Butterfield and Fake condemned 26-year-old Christopher “Kio” Dizefalo, the parking valet who has been charged with abducting Butterfield.

“We especially want to thank the seasoned law enforcement officers who understand the very real threat of predators who use the allure of drugs to groom teenagers,” they wrote in a statement to The San Francisco Standard.

In a statement, Marin County Sheriff’s Office said Butterfield was found uninjured and said they had run away from home voluntarily.

Here’s everything we know so far about the runaway billionaire heir and their tech entrepreneur parents.

A grey suitcase and a note – Mint Butterfield’s sudden disappearance

On April 21 2024, 16-year-old Mint Butterfield vanished from their mother’s home in the affluent Bolinas area on the west Californian coast.

The following day, Butterfield’s mother, Caterina Fake, discovered a note that morning indicating that Butterfield had left, and taken a grey suitcase with her. Fake then reported her child missing to the police.

Caterina Fake, Silicon Valley entrepreneur and co-founder of Flickr, reported her child Mint missing to the police on April 22 (Getty Images)

At the time, Adam Schermerhorn, a public information officer with the Marin County Sheriff’s Office said that authorities did “not have any reason to believe there is foul play” or “anything criminal” in connection to Mint’s disappearance.

“It is unclear how Mint left the area, as they did not have access to a vehicle, or phone,” police said in the press release. “At this time, we have no information to believe that Mint was taken against their will.”

However, the authorities did express concern that Mint was “at-risk” due to a reported previous threat of suicide.

Butterfield is found in a crime-ridden San Francisco district with an “adult friend” 

On Saturday evening, Marin County Sheriff’s Office said they had located Butterfield  safe in San Francisco after being found with an “adult friend” – a man 10 years Butterfield’s senior.

Christopher “Kio” Dizefalo, a 26-year-old who parks cars for a living, was with Butterfield in his white van, which police officers tracked down.

Mint Butterfield was found in the crime-ridden area of Tenderloin (AFP via Getty Images)

The pair were found on Eddy Street, in the city’s crime-ridden Tenderloin District. The neighbourhood has a large homeless population and is considered a hub for drug dealing. A report from 2018 said the streets of Tenderloin are “overwhelmed with heroin needles and mounting piles of human waste.”

In a statement, Marin County Sheriff’s Office said Butterfield was found uninjured and said she had run away from home voluntarily.

Dizefalo was arrested, interviewed by detectives, and charged with unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor, child stealing and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, according to Marin County booking records.

Mint Butterfield’s Silicon Valley tech billionaire parents

Mint’s parents, Stewart Butterfield and Caterina Fake are both esteemed Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs. The couple got married in 2001, but divorced six years later, shortly after having their only child.

Stewart Butterfield’s estimated personal wealth is $1.6 billion (AFP via Getty Images)

Their father, Stewart Butterfield, founded Slack in 2013. According to Forbes, Slack was acquired in July 2021 for $27.7 billion. Although he left Slack in 2022, the business magazine estimates Stewart’s personal wealth to be $1.6 billion.

Alongside his then wife and Mint’s mother Caterina Fake, Butterfield co-founded started the imaging service Flickr with her then partner, going on to sell it to Yahoo in 2005.

Butterfield became engaged to Jennifer Rubio in 2019 (Getty Images)

For her role in creating Flickr, Fake was listed in Time magazine’s Time 100 most influential people, and she has been recognised within Silicon Valley for her work as an angel investor.

Since the couple’s divorce, both Fake and Butterfield have found different partners. In May 2019, Butterfield became engaged to Jennifer Rubio, co-founder of American suitcase brand Away Luggage. As of 2015, Fake is in a relationship with Jaiku co-founder Jyri Engeström, and the couple have three children between them.

Aside from their statement to the press, there has been no word from Butterfield’s parents so far about the ordeal. Equally, neither Dizefalo or Butterfield have commented publicly about the disappearance, and it remains to be seen whether Dizefalo’s arrest will result in a trial.

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