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POLICE have revealed eerie details about the case of a girl who was allegedly abducted nearly six years ago by her non-custodial mother.
Heather Unbehaun, 40, was charged once Kayla Unbehaun was found safe in North Carolina by her father over the weekend after vanishing from Illinois in 2017.
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The girl’s non-custodial mother is scheduled to appear in court on July 11 on charges in connection to alleged abduction that occurred more than five years ago when Kayla was nine years old.
Heather posted a $250,000 bail before walking out of the Buncombe County Detention Facility, Fox News reported.
Her father traveled from the Midwest to pick up the now 14-year-old girl and Kayla is now back in her home state, police revealed.
A North Carolina store owner is said to have recognized the missing girl after seeing her featured on an episode of the Netflix show “Unsolved Mysteries” and called Asheville Police Department.
“What’s most unusual is the ability to stay off the grid, if you will, for that period of time,” Asheville Police Lt. Jonathan Brown told a local news outlet.
“Typically we leave a technological bread crumb and those are usually very easy and quick to be tracked down. This was not.”
In a statement, the agency said its officers responded to a clothing store around 7.26p.m. on May 13 to investigate a reported kidnapping.
Police said that officers arrived after a witness said they believed she recognized a woman who kidnapped a child in 2017 and “they were able to locate and make contact with the woman and the child.”
The statement went on to say: “After further investigation by officers along with confirmation with the South Elgin Police Department, officers were able to confirm the identification of Heather Unbehaun (Mother / Kidnapper) and a minor child in her custody.”
A felony warrant for kidnapping had been issued for Heather Unbehaun in July 2017, according to The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
The NEMEC said Kayla was previously last seen in Illinois on July 5 of 2017, before being “allegedly abducted by her mother.”
“I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe. I want to thank [the City of Elgin, Illinois Police and Fire Departments],” Kayla’s father, Ryan, said in a statement this week.
He also thanked “the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and all of the law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case.”
The statement went on to say: “We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning.”
