UPDATE: Ariel Davis has been found alive and is at an undisclosed hospital. No other details have been released.
EARLIER: A search is underway for a 27-year-old Jefferson County woman who has been missing for 24 hours.
Ariel Nicole Josaphine Davis was reported missing by family Tuesday. She is mentally disabled and does not drive nor handle her own finances.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency on Wednesday issued a Missing and Endangered Alert for Ariel.
Ariel lives with her parents and was last seen about 10 a.m. Tuesday at her family’s home on Creekstone Circle in Clay.
Her sister, Alexis Davis, said Ariel is easily persuaded and they believe she has been in communication with an unknown man who gained her trust and lured her out of the house.
“She has just disappeared,’’ Alexis said.
Ariel Nicole Josaphine Davis, a 27-year-old mentally disabled woman, was reported missing from Jefferson County on April 2, 2024.(Contributed)
Ariel was home when her parents left for work Tuesday.
Her father called Alexis several hours later, concerned that he had not been able to get in touch with Ariel. Family said she always answers her cell phone.
Alexis rushed home. The door was unlocked and all of the cash in the house was gone.
“Her bag was gone, some of her clothes were gone,’’ she said. “Nothing of great value was missing.”
Because Ariel’s father is on her bank account, they received a notification from Regions Bank in downtown Birmingham Tuesday that there had been a withdrawal from Ariel’s account – all $16 she had in there – and the account closed.
“I think he thought there would be more money in there,’’ Alexis said. “But we just got back from Florida for spring break, and she had spent all her money there.”
A photo was released by the bank and Alexis said they do not recognize the man with Ariel.
Ariel Nicole Josaphine Davis, a 27-year-old mentally disabled woman, was reported missing from Jefferson County on April 2, 2024.(Contributed)
The family said they’ve received a tip they were both seen at the Greyhound bus station heading to Atlanta.
“I just have a feeling she’s not in Alabama anymore,’’ Alexis said.
“We can’t sleep,’’ she said. “We’ve been up since the moment we realized she was gone.”
Ariel is 5-feet, 4-inches tall and weighs 120 pounds. She was last known to be wearing a pink or peach tank top.
Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office at 205-882-0087.