Kayla Unbehaun was found after she disappeared as a 9-year old. Image via Twitter @ygorpalopoli.
Missing girl FOUND after being recognised on ‘Unsolved Mysteries’
Nearly six years after being abducted, 15-year Kayla Unbehaun has been found. And it’s thanks to an ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ episode.
Kayla Unbehaun was found after she disappeared as a 9-year old. Image via Twitter @ygorpalopoli.
A girl who went missing in 2017 was safely reunited with her father after a store owner in North Carolina in the US recognised her from her Netflix series, Unsolved Mysteries, People reports.
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MISSING GIRL REUNITED WITH FATHER AFTER ABDUCTION SIX YEARS AGO
A little girl who went missing nearly six years ago was recently reunited with her father after an avid ‘Unsolved Mysteries’-fan recognised her from her show and called the police, People reports.
A store owner in North Carolina, US, alerted local police after he recognised the 15-year Kayla Unbehaun, the publication states.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reported that Kayla was found safely.
SHE WAS RECOGNISED THANKS TO AN EPISODE OF ‘UNSOLVED MYSTERIES’
Netflix also acknowledged the extraordinary positive outcome. According to the streaming service, the episode about Kayla was in Volume 3, Episode 9.
“Kayla was only 9 years old when she was abducted by her non-custodial mother, Heather Unbehaun, from South Elgin, Illinois, on July 5, 2017,” the organization shared on Twitter.
The heroic store owner allegedly first saw Kayla on the Netflix series, Unsolved Mysteries, which aired at the end of last year.
The girl’s mother was arrested, and faces face child abduction charges, according to WGN-TV. She was reportedly released on bail Tuesday.
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KAYLA’S DAD ‘OVERJOYED’
“I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe,” Kayla’s father, Ryan Iserka, said in a statement shared via the NCMEC organization.
Kayla was first reported missing in 2017 after her mother allegedly took her on a camping trip but never returned home, WGN reports.
According to the outlet, Kayla’s mother did not have custody of her at the time of her disappearance.
“It was discovered that all of Heather’s social media had been canceled and her phone turned off,” Iserka previously wrote on a GoFundMe page that raised thousands of dollars to help search for Kayla.
Iserka never stopped looking for his daughter.
On her 13th birthday, he shared a special message to his daughter along with a photo of her when she was younger.
“Happy birthday Kayla! I love you forever and I hope you’re safe, happy and I’m always looking forward to seeing you again someday. I pray for you every day and think about you all day long. My love for you has no limits or boundaries. You’re always unconditionally welcome in your home here with us and in my arms,” he captioned the image on Facebook.
NBC reports Kayla was placed in the care of the North Carolina Division of Social Services and will soon be reunited with her family in Illinois.
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