Authorities in Georgia say a 12-year-old girl who was missing for two months was found with a 31-year-old man she had been communicating with online prior to her disappearance.
Maria Gomez-Perez of Gainesville, Ga., was found “safe and OK” in another state on Thursday, July 25, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
She was last seen on May 29 in her home, per police.
Maria was found with 31-year-old Antonio Agustin on Thursday, Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch said at a press briefing.
Police did not detail any charges against him, but Couch said he could face several felony charges given that he moved a child across state lines.
He said authorities believe Maria had been communicating with Augustin on Facebook and other online apps.
“Maria had indicated that she was unhappy and she wanted to leave home,” Couch said, adding that she had been communicating with other “adult males” online and gave them the same information.
“Let me be very clear on this – Maria is the victim here,” Couch said. “Remember she is only 12 years old.”
Investigation revealed that Augustin allegedly drove from his home in Ohio to pick up Maria from Gainesville on May 29, Couch said.
Police believe Augustin had Maria with him at his home the entire time.
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The case caught a break last week when Maria allegedly messaged her father Gomez Alonzo on Facebook to ask him to stop looking for her, per investigators.
She was using a new Facebook account she created to be able to message him, Couch said, and told her father that she was doing alright and would not be coming home.
Once Alonzo notified authorities, they were able to track down Maria by tracing the IP address to a Dover, Ohio, address and found Augustin with Maria at a local swimming pool.
Hall County authorities, along with authorities from Tuscarawas County in Ohio, then arrested Augustin from outside a shopping center and safely recovered Maria from the scene, Couch said.
Augustin was in custody in Tuscarawas as of Friday afternoon and Hall County authorities are expected to bring charges against him, Couch said.
An investigation is ongoing.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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