LOS ANGELES — Police are investigating whether a pizzeria manager accused of kidnapping two boys could be linked to the disappearance of a third youngster who has never been found.

Detectives described Michael Devlin, 41, as the “most viable lead” in the case of Charles Arlin Henderson. Like Shawn Hornbeck, the 15-year-old found in Mr. Devlin’s apartment in Kirkwood, Mo., last week more than four years after he disappeared, Arlin was abducted at age 11 from a rural area west of the city while riding his bike.

Police also said Arlin bore a striking resemblance to both Shawn and the other boy Devlin is accused of kidnapping, 13-year-old Ben Ownby. Mr. Devlin pleaded not guilty yesterday to kidnapping Ben, who disappeared on his bus journey home from school on January 8 in Beaufort, some 50 miles west of St. Louis.

On Friday, police found Ben and Shawn in Mr. Devlin’s apartment. Mr. Devlin appeared before a judge via video link from a Franklin County Jail cell where he is in solitary confinement. He faces a maximum sentence of life for the kidnapping of Ben. He has also been charged with kidnapping and “terrorizing ” Shawn with a handgun to prevent him from fleeing. No preliminary court date for these charges has yet been set.

On “The Oprah Winfrey show” yesterday, Shawn said he had prayed constantly that he would be reunited with his family.

He also said he had been “terrified” of trying to contact his parents. Speaking publicly for the first time about his ordeal, the teenager said in the pre-recorded interview, “I prayed that one day my parents would find me and I’d be united.”

Shawn’s parents, Pam and Craig Akers, said they had so far not spoken to Shawn about his captivity on the advice of experts. But they are convinced he was threatened with his life so he would not run away or attempt to contact them. Shawn reportedly had access to the Internet, a mobile phone, and was seen out riding a bike, and yet he stayed with Mr. Devlin for 51 months.