BUNNELL, Fla. – A 61-year-old Hastings man arrested after the recovery of a missing 11-year-old boy has been sentenced to 30 years in state prison on kidnapping, child abuse and other charges, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Darnell Hairston pleaded no contest Aug. 19 to kidnapping inflicting bodily harm, aggravated child abuse, battery by strangulation, robbery with a deadly weapon and resisting an officer without violence.
At a Sept. 9 sentencing hearing, Circuit Judge Dawn Nichols adjudicated Hairston guilty on all five counts and sentenced him to 30 years in the Florida Department of Corrections.
Hairston had been held without bond at the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility since his arrest in December 2025. He is awaiting transfer to state prison.
The case began after a citizen reported suspicious activity, ultimately helping authorities locate the missing 11-year-old, according to the sheriff’s office. Investigators determined Hairston was involved in kidnapping and harming the child.
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly credited the citizen who reported the suspicious activity, investigators and prosecutors with the State Attorney’s Office for Florida’s 7th Judicial Circuit for their work on the case.
“This was one of the most successful ‘See Something, Say Something’ cases we’ve ever had,” Staly said, adding that the report “led to the recovery of a missing child” and Hairston’s eventual prison sentence.
The sheriff’s office said the case is not completely resolved because a second defendant accused of participating in the kidnapping is still awaiting trial.
Teen co-defendant still awaiting trial
Junior Bishop, 16, is accused of being Hairston’s co-conspirator and is being prosecuted as an adult.
Bishop faces charges of principal to armed kidnapping, aggravated fleeing and eluding, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, grand theft of a motor vehicle, reckless driving, driving without a license and resisting an officer without violence.
The sheriff’s office said Bishop has not yet gone to trial. His charges remain accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.