Missing 14-Year-Old Girl's Family Believes She Was Lured Away from Home After Meeting Somebody Online: 'This Is a Nightmare' By Becca Longmire 18

The family of a 14-year-old girl who’s missing in Georgia is worried she might have been lured away by somebody she met online.

Amy Reidling’s stepmother, Ginny Rutledge, discovered the teen was missing from their DeKalb County home on the evening of Sunday, Sept. 21, according to NBC affiliate 11Alive.

On Monday, Sept. 22, the DeKalb County Police Department posted on Facebook that Amy had last been seen at around 2 p.m. local time on the day she vanished at her residence, located on the 1900 block of Janet Lane in the city of Decatur.

Police confirmed that the teen is 5 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 105 lbs., with brown eyes and brown hair with bangs. 

A DeKalb County Police Department spokesperson didn’t have any further information to add when contacted by PEOPLE on Wednesday, Sept. 24.

“The investigation is ongoing and active. As with any missing child case in our community, our officers are searching diligently to bring Amy home,” the police spokesperson said in an email to PEOPLE.

Amy had been due to attend her homecoming this weekend and had been shopping for accessories to match her dress on the day she disappeared, according to 11Alive.

Her stepmom, Rutledge, told the station, “This is a nightmare … it’s cliché and everything, it’ll happen, but here we are.”

“I opened the door, and she was gone. Tore the house apart, called 911 at 9:15 [p.m.],” she said. “No one’s messages have been read. Every time we call, it goes straight to voicemail.” 

Amy’s dad and stepmom have since hired a private investigator, with Rutledge telling the outlet of also getting help from the public amid the search, “Everybody’s been stomping the streets, putting up fliers.”

“You don’t even understand how many people are here helping to find you,” she said in a message to the teen. “And we all want you back.”

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Amy’s parents believe she may have met somebody online and was coached, before being lured out of her home. 

“There’s a lot she doesn’t know, and especially in a big city like Atlanta,” Rutledge told 11Alive.

“I’m positive that she was taken … Amy, we love you, we miss you. We want you here. That’s why you’re here. We wanted you here. You’re my girl, you’re my person. I miss you. Please come back,” she continued.

“Please let us know you’re okay if you can. Be safe, fight hard,” Rutledge told her stepdaughter.