Officials doubt boy who surfaced in Illinois is missing N.C. child.(Chicago Tribune)

Byline: Courtney Flynn and John McCormick

CHICAGO _ While the true identity of the boy known as Eli Quick remains a mystery, the seemingly far-fetched story of his background has begun checking out, and investigators appeared to be losing confidence Thursday that Eli actually is a missing child from North Carolina.

A source familiar with the investigation said officials are turning away from the theory that Eli might be Tristen "Buddy" Myers, a blond, blue-eyed boy who wandered away from his great-aunt's home in Roseboro, N.C., more than two years ago.

The assessment was based in part on interviews conducted by FBI agents and preliminary tests to determine the boy's identity, such as dental and fingerprint records, the source said.

Authorities, however, were reluctant to make any official declaration until they receive the results of DNA tests attempting to match Eli with Buddy's birth mother. Those could be completed Friday.

Ricky Quick, who brought a dirty and bedraggled Eli to an Evanston hospital in February and subsequently lost custody of the boy, has remained steadfast that Eli is his son.

Quick has said the boy was given to him by a woman, with whom he once had a one-night stand after a party in Chicago. He said he was never sure if he was the father, but he raised the boy nonetheless, changing his name from Timothy to Eli.