Oct. 2 (UPI) — Police late Monday said a missing 9-year-old girl has been found “in good health” after going missing in upstate New York over the weekend. A suspect is in custody.
“Charlotte Sena has been located and in good health. A suspect is in custody,” New York State Police said in a statement to the press. Police also revealed they had “identified an individual as being in the area of the Moreau Lake State Park around the time Charlotte went missing.”
Police said they searched “multiple residences” where the suspect was known live and eventually found Sena, who had been reported missing Sunday after riding her bike at the park.
Police gave no additional details about the suspect or how Sena was found.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said she was elated over the news about Sena’s safe discovery.
“We are overjoyed at the news that Charlotte Sena has been located safely this evening after an intense days-long search,” Hochul said in a statement issued late Monday. “Our hearts are with her family as they welcome her home. Thank you to the New York State Police, New York Park Police and all who worked so tirelessly to find Charlotte. It is because of their efforts that Charlotte will be able to return home safe to her family.”
Earlier in the day, a contingent of searchers including numerous state police officers had ramped up their hunt for a missing girl.
Columns of New York State Police vehicles, FBI agents, a busload of volunteers and other searchers gathering on foot were seen entering Moreau State Park early in the day, 36 hours after she was reported missing by her parents, the Albany, N.Y., Times-Union reported.
Hochul had said on Sunday the search team includes more than 100 personnel, including 75 polices officers on the ground in the park, as well as drones, an airboat search team, six underwater rescue teams and another boat equipped with sonar.
“We are leaving no stone, no branch, no table, no cabin unturned, untouched, unexamined in our search to find Charlotte,” she told reporters, adding, “I promised her parents we’ll find their daughter. She’s all of our daughters. Their family needs love. They need prayers.”
New York State Police Lt. Col. Richard Mazzone said Charlotte was last seen at 6:15 p.m. Saturday riding her bike on a trail in the 6,250-acre park, located about 45 miles north of Albany.
After her parents noticed she was missing, they began a search and found her bike left unattended on a loop trail, leading to fears she had been abducted. Shortly thereafter they called emergency responders.
The Amber Alert was issued Sunday morning.
