The family of a 9-year-old girl feared to have been abducted from an upstate New York park is begging for help as huge search efforts continue for the “trusting” youngster who could now be in “imminent danger.”
Charlotte Sena, went missing during a bike ride while camping at New York’s Moreau Lake State Park with her family Saturday evening in what Gov. Kathy Hochul called “every parent’s nightmare.”
“I just want my daughter back,” Charlotte’s mother, Trisha, told the Albany Times Union of the “good kid” who is “trusting.”
“We just want her returned safely like any parent would,” her family also told NBC News.
“No tip is too small, please call if you know anything at all.”
The young girl was last seen wearing an orange tie-dyed Pokemon shirt, dark blue pants, black Crocs and a gray helmet. She is described as a white child with blond hair, standing 5 feet 1 and weighing 90 pounds.
“She is a highly intelligent, adventurous 9-year-old — but obviously this is out of character for her,” a state police spokesperson, Stephanie O’Neill,told the Times Union, adding that Charlotte had been to the park before but was not overly familiar with it.
Her bike was found on Loop A, with a 100-person search party composed of state troopers, special ops, forest rangers, park police and civilian volunteers converging at the scene.
Police dogs, two drones, two boats and six underwater teams are also scouring the area around the park, while others search near Saratoga Springs.
Following Charlotte’s disappearance, NY State Police Lt. Col. Richard Mazzone said his team conducted an extensive 18-hour search of the park before issuing an Amber Alert, with police believing the child is no longer there.
Still, Moreau Lake State Park is closed down until further notice as law enforcement continues to search.
Visitors were asked Sunday night to avoid the area, and leave the search efforts to the authorities and professionals.
“Please, also send all love and light to the family, as well as the people searching,” the park said on Facebook.
The governor said Sena’s family was left distraught over the sudden disappearance.
“The family was here to make memories, the kind that would last a lifetime. Instead, it turned into every parent’s nightmare,” Hochul said.