A young California girl who was kidnapped in 2020 when she was just 5 years old has been found safe, about 2,700 miles from home in North Carolina.
The girl, identified as Karen Rojas by the organization Missing People in America, was reported missing from Duarte, about 20 miles east of Los Angeles, on July 1, 2020.
Los Angeles County’s Department of Family Services had an ongoing investigation involving the child at the time she went missing, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.
“According to authorities, the child’s mother — who had custody — stopped communicating with DCFS personnel and was believed to have taken the child,” authorities said.
Last Friday, detectives received information that the child could be in Washington County, North Carolina, about 135 miles from Raleigh, and approximately 2,700 miles from Southern California.
An investigation revealed that Rojas, now 11 years old, was enrolled at a local school in North Carolina “under an alias name,” the Washington County Sheriff’s Office said.
“After working in combination with multiple agencies from NC to California, the child was taken into protective custody, and is SAFE!” authorities said.
“These are very rare occurrences to have such a positive outcome on such an old case as this, but it reminds us that through hard work, and dedication, and cooperation. Stories with positive outcomes like these can happen,” the sheriff’s office added.
No arrests were announced in the case.
Due to the child’s age and ongoing investigations, authorities will not be providing any additional information, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office said.
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department says it will continue to work with the Department of Family Services and authorities in North Carolina on its investigation.
