CARSON CITY, Nev. (KOLO) – Law enforcement is shedding light on the size and scope of their efforts to track down a missing 5-year-old girl and her father who is accused of kidnapping.
Amaya Meithof was reportedly taken from her home early Sunday morning. The child’s mother, Crystal Rose, told Carson City deputies she had allowed Christopher Meithof to stay with her overnight. When she woke up, she discovered Christopher and Amaya were gone.
Officials credited tips from the public along with coordination between local law enforcement and federal partners with helping locate Amaya before investigators believe the suspect could have traveled farther or potentially attempted to leave the country.
“In this case several tips did line up with what we already had and we were able to hone in our investigation which provided a rapid result,” Bruce Pendragon, a detective with the Carson City Sheriff’s Office said.
Early Monday morning, Christopher Meithof was spotted by a traffic camera on U.S. 395 near Clear Creek Road.
In a coordinated effort between the U.S. Marshal’s Pacific Southwest Fugitive Task Force, the Homeland Security Investigations Los Angeles Division, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Bureau, a traffic stop was conducted just after 2 p.m. in Palmdale, California where Amaya was safely recovered. Christopher Meithof was not with the child at the time, but was located and arrested at a residence near the traffic stop.
The child is in the care of Palmdale Child Protective Services, which will help facilitate the child’s return to her mother.
“It’s a credit to the partnership that goes on every day that a lot of people don’t see within our country, but it’s a testament to what we do as law enforcement,” Gary Schofield, the U.S. Marshal for Nevada said.
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