Sister Says Tad Cummins Explained His Reasoning to Her

Tad Cummins has yet to tell the world why he allegedly spent 39 days on the run with 15-year-old Elizabeth Thomas, but Cummins' sister says he has told her. In a Today Show interview, Daphne Quinn says she has spoken to her brother three times since the two were found Thursday in a cabin near Cecilville, Calif., and says she asked the former Tennessee teacher why. She says the 50-year-old gave her an answer: He said Elizabeth "wanted to run away and she wanted to leave. And he didn’t want her to go alone, and so he went with her so that he could know that she was safe." People reports previous statements by an attorney for Elizabeth's family counter that and allege Cummins "groomed" the teen.

And then there's the federal complaint filed against Cummins, which says he refilled his prescription for erectile dysfunction medication and made reservations for one-bed rooms at multiple Super 8 motels prior to allegedly kidnapping Elizabeth. The federal complaint also states Cummins bought chocolates and sexual lubricant at Walmart while on the run with Elizabeth. As for Cummins, Quinn says, "I think he would like to get his family back but I think it just hasn’t hit him yet that that’s not gonna happen." WHNT reports Cummins is scheduled to appear in federal court in Sacramento at 2pm local time Monday. (Cummins allegedly told someone Elizabeth was his 22-year-old wife.)