UPDATE: A girl said to be in “extreme danger” has been found safe in Queens, NY, reports ABC7 News.
This afternoon, The Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority reported the girl had been found safe.
CNN reports the girl is now in the custody of her parents.
According to ABC12, the whole thing had been a misunderstanding. The parents saw the news stories about the girl’s disappearance and phoned the Demidchik Law Firm in Flushing, New York, according to the law firm. The family visited that firm on Friday.
Virginia State Police on Thursday had issued an amber alert for a Chinese student visiting the U.S. with her tour group from China, reported ABC6.
Jing Jing Ma, 12, had been seen leaving Reagan National Airport, with an unknown Asian woman.
Police held a news conference this morning.
The incident happened shortly after Ma received her passport. She then separated from the group and left with the woman in a White 2016 Infinity driven by a man. In a news conference this morning, authorities reported several agencies including the FBI had joined the investigation. FBI agents met with the family at the law firm today and are no longer treating this as an abduction, but a misunderstanding.
The identity of the individuals who left with Ma was not known. However, Ma had contact with several people during a tour of the World Trade Center in New York. Police this morning said they suspect those people have something to do with Ma’s disappearance, but could not say if they were the same people Ma met in Washington. The meeting was described as cordial.
The tour group has since left Washington and is on is now in the San Francisco to continue its visit. Many in the tour group have been interviewed by authorities.
AsAmNews has Asian America in its heart. We’re an all-volunteer effort of dedicated staff and interns. Check out our Twitter feed and Facebook page for more content. Please consider interning, joining our staff or submitting a story.