Missing 12-Year-Old Found as Man Arrested in Connection with Her Disappearance

Julia Moore
·2 min read
1

A 27-year-old has been detained in connection with the Feb. 22 disappearance of a 12-year-old in Houston

<p>Columbus Texas Police Department</p> Sirterryon Preston, 27, was detained by the Columbus Texas Police Department

Columbus Texas Police Department

Sirterryon Preston, 27, was detained by the Columbus Texas Police Department

A 12-year-old girl has been found safe 10 days after she went missing in the Houston area.

The girl had been missing since Feb. 22, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. She was seen getting into a dark colored four-door Dodge pickup and was wearing a white crop top and pink joggers.

On Friday, she was found “unharmed” in Columbus, Texas, Houston police said in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter). She was taken to Texas Children’s Hospital for evaluation, according to the Columbus Texas Police Department.

After the girl was found, Columbus police “attempted to detain” 27-year-old Sirterryon Preston “in reference to having possession of” the missing 12-year-old, who an Amber Alert was issued for.

Preston “attempted to flee police custody,” but he was arrested on Friday and charged with evading police, per Columbus PD. He was taken to the Colorado County Detention Facility, where he remains, pending further investigation from the FBI.

Related: 12-Year-Old Girl Who is Subject of Amber Alert Could Be Trafficking Victim, Police Say

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. 

At the time of her disappearance, Houston police believed that the girl could be a trafficking victim, according to local outlets KHOU and Click 2 Houston.

KHOU reported that on Feb. 22, the minor asked her mother to wake her up early for school. But the next morning, she was nowhere to be found. Despite being reported missing on the 22nd, an Amber Alert wasn’t issued until days later, when police reportedly said they learned new information that suggested the girl was in danger.

“I pray and hope that she’s not in no type of harm’s way,” the girl's mother, Shannon Williams, told Click 2 Houston at the time. “She’s a baby. She doesn’t understand what’s actually going on, so it’s been really devastating.”

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.