ATLANTA (AP) — A 12-year-old girl whose disappearance galvanized a Georgia community has been found in Ohio.
Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch said Friday that the girl was found Thursday in Dover, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) south of Cleveland, in the company of a Guatemalan man who is now jailed.
The girl was last seen at the home of her father on May 29 in Gainesville, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of Atlanta. She was reported missing a day later.
Her disappearance sparked a huge search, with local authorities and businesses offering a $20,000 reward. Volunteers canvassed the community looking for the girl and papered the area with posters, flyers and even billboards seeking the girl's return.
Couch said investigators found she had been communicating online with men, expressing unhappiness and saying she wanted to leave home. He said investigators believe Antonio Augustin drove to Georgia, picked up the girl, and drove her back to Augustin's home in Dover. While Couch said Augustin is 31 years old, Ohio jail records list him as 34.
Couch said investigators began to home in on her location when she contacted her father using a new Facebook account last week, telling her father that she was OK and not coming home, and asking her father to stop looking for her. Couch said investigators used that message to track down the Facebook page's internet address, leading them to a phone number associated with a home in Dover.
Four sheriff's investigators traveled to Ohio this week and spotted her at a city swimming pool, later arresting Augustin and recovering the girl. Couch said she was examined by medical personnel.
Tuscarawas County jail records show Augustin is being held on a rape charge. Jail records don't list an attorney who can speak for him and officials with the Tuscarawas County Sheriff's Office didn't immediately return a phone call and an email seeking comment.
Couch said Georgia authorities will also be seeking criminal charges against Augustin.
This story has been edited to remove the identity of the victim.
