The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reports that a 9-year-old Illinois child allegedly abducted by her mother over six years ago has been found safe.
The center said Monday night that Kayla Unbehaun, now 15 years old, was in North Carolina. “I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe,” said Kayla’s father, Ryan Iskerka, in a statement.
Kayla was identified in a shopping center in Asheville, North Carolina, over the weekend and police were called.
Bring Kayla Home, a Facebook organization dedicated to raising awareness about her, has uploaded age-progressed photographs of what she might look like. Her disappearance was also featured in a Netflix episode of “Unsolved Mysteries.”
According to CBS affiliate WBTV, Kayla’s mother, Heather Unbehaun, was jailed on a $250,000 bond and awaiting extradition to Illinois. After Kayla went missing, a warrant was issued for her arrest, according to the missing children’s center.
A Tweet from CBS News official account. You can also learn more by reading the following tweet:-
A 9-year-old Illinois girl who was allegedly kidnapped by her mother nearly six years ago has been found safe, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. https://t.co/v3NA8Z8vqb
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 17, 2023
Iskerka told CBS Chicago that he planned to pick up Kayla in 2017 after she spent the Fourth of July with her mother. He claimed that Heather Unbehaun’s family informed him that she and Kayla had not returned from a camping trip after the holiday.
On Monday night, Iskerka thanked law enforcement agencies who worked on the case and those who raised awareness about Kayla throughout the years.
“We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning,” he explained.
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