Cops Find Girl Allegedly Kidnapped in 2020 On Other Side of US Years Later

Police found a girl allegedly kidnapped from California in 2020 safe on March 10 in North Carolina, authorities said.

Officers located the girl, now 11 years old, following a tip from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LACSD) and the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), according to a Washington County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) press release. Police said the girl was kidnapped on June 2, 2020 in Los Angeles County.

The WCSO determined the child attended Washington County Schools with an alias based on the tip they received. The sheriff’s department brought the girl into protective custody with the help of multiple agencies in North Carolina and California.

“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 [sic] stories with positive outcomes like these can happen,” the WCSO said.

While the sheriff’s department did not release the child’s name due to “privacy reasons,” ABC 7 identified her as Karen Rojas. Rojas was five years old when she was allegedly kidnapped, the outlet reported. She was last seen in Duarte, California, according to a January 2021 commercial for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. (RELATED: 7-Year-Old Boy, 12-Year-Old Girl Escape Fiery Car Crash Wreckage. Four Family Members Die)

No arrests have yet been announced in connection with Rojas’ alleged kidnapping, according to The Charlotte Observer. Detectives are investigating how she wound up 2,650 miles from her home, authorities said.

The Los Angeles County DCFS had purportedly been conducting an investigation into the child at the time of her disappearance, the LACSD said in a press release. Authorities believe the child’s mother, who had custody of her, allegedly took her after she stopped communicating with DCFS, according to the same release.

The Daily Caller contacted the LACSD, who deferred to the Temple Sheriff’s Station. A spokesperson for the Temple Sheriff’s Station confirmed the child had been safely located in North Carolina. The spokesperson also alleged the child was labeled missing after her mother stopped communicating with DCFS.

The Daily Caller also contacted the Washington County, North Carolina Sheriff’s Office and the Los Angeles County DCFS, but did not hear back as of publication.