A 15-year-old girl from South Jordan, Utah, identified herself to officials in Colorado Springs on Sunday, six weeks after she went missing.
The South Jordan Police Department confirmed in a press release on Tuesday that the teenager had been found. Police said she was in good health and is now in the care of Colorado officials.
Her family has been notified, and plans are underway for their reunion.
The Context
The teenager was last seen on April 21, after she was dropped off at a school in American Fork, Utah. Police said she then went to a local gas station to purchase some items and later boarded a UTA train. She exited the train in Provo.
The case has led to three adult men from different states being charged in connection with her disappearance, raising questions about child safety in the digital age.
What To Know
Scanner audio indicated that she walked into the Colorado Springs police station on Sunday and identified herself as a missing teen, Salt Lake City news station KSL-TV reported.
Investigators discovered online messages exchanged between the 15-year-old and three adult men during the search. Police said she had been attempting to meet individuals she met online using multiple social media platforms and chat applications.
Authorities charged Matthew Nicholas Menard, of Miami, Florida; William Taylor Glines, of Texas City, Texas; and Samuel Mitchell, of Herriman, Utah, in connection with the case.
Menard turned himself in to the South Jordan Police Department on May 28. He faces charges of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, enticement of a minor, and criminal solicitation.
Mitchell faces charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and enticing a minor.
Glines remains at large, with an arrest warrant issued against him, according to ABC4 Utah.
What People Are Saying
South Jordan Police Department Officer Shaun Becker told KSL-TV: “It is a good night for the detectives and their hard work to find that she is safe and in good health.”
The missing teen’s mother told KSL-TV before she was found: “[Our] whole life is upside down right now. We need her back. We miss her.”
What Happens Next
Authorities said the teenager will be reunited with her family in Utah, while ongoing criminal proceedings against the three men charged in connection with her disappearance are expected to continue.
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