Timothy Pitzen's father says the hoax was like "snatching a scab"

James Pitzen, the father of Timmothy Pitzen, compared the moment when he discovered that a man who claimed to be his missing son had claimed to have arranged everything to "pull off a scab."

"It's just painful," he said in an interview. "Now you have to wait for scabies to heal."

This man, Brian Michael Rini, 23, was accused Friday of making false statements to a federal agent.

Timmothy Pitzen disappeared in Illinois eight years ago, at the age of 6 years. In an interview with NBC News, his father said he believed the latest call from the authorities to alert him to a possible breakup in his son's case was the fourth since 2011.

A detective had not told him much about it – just that the authorities were checking a track.

"I will come back with you as soon as possible with anything else," he recalls. "I'm like, 'Okay'"

James Pitzen's hopes were great, at least in the beginning. Even though her son disappeared in the most cruel circumstances – Timmothy's mother is believed to have committed suicide after leaving a note saying that Timmothy was safe but would never be found – he believes his son is still alive.

Maybe Timothy is in the middle of nowhere, said James Pitzen. Maybe there is no cell phone, TV or computer. Maybe he's going to school at home.

"It could be … four counties on [on] 100 hectares in the middle of nowhere, "he said.

After the detective's call, James Pitzen prepared himself for the stress of the next few days. He was prepared for phone calls, for journalists who would report to his home.

"I took care of that for eight years," he said. It's "pretty much second nature."

"I learned to calm down and think about it before answering a question or simply to give up and come back later," he added.

Then came the bad news and the reopening of a wound nearly ten years old.

He added that a group of close friends helped him stay put. And even though last week's events were the most painful type of ad, he still hopes it will generate new leads.

"The exhibition will allow him to find his face, to find the image of age, a description of what it could look like," said James Pitzen, adding that "finally, he will come back somewhere".

"I just want my son to go home," he said.