Missing West Virginia girl found with sex offender in Michigan
BRIDGEPORT, W.Va (WDTV) - The Michigan State Police have announced that a recently missing West Virginia child was found in the home of a registered sex offender.
16-year-old EnvyS’imore Haines was first reported missing after she was last seen on April 4th, at her home. The Beckley Police Department said in a Facebook Post that Haines told her mother that she was taking out the trash but never came back inside.
On April 11th, she was found by the Michigan State Police after officers in West Virginia reached out and asked MSP for assistance in locating her.
“Troopers from the MSP Gaylord Post spoke with an officer from the West Virginia police department,” The Michigan State Police said in a press release. “The officer told troopers his agency was investigating a missing juvenile, and his agency has information indicating the missing juvenile is in the Petoskey area. The officer also said they had reason to believe the juvenile was with a registered sex offender”.
Michigan State Troopers obtained and executed a warrant for a home in the area, and found the missing juvenile as well as the person who was harboring her: a 26-year-old man with a previous conviction of criminal sexual conduct with a victim under 13 years old.
The man, who was not named by MSP, was home at the time, and admitted to police that he knew she had been reported missing, and was allowing her to stay with him.
Officials say the man was arrested and lodged in the Emmet County Jail and that the juvenile was transported to the MSP Gaylord Post and arrangements are being made to return her to her home in West Virginia.
The police department in West Virginia is handling the investigation as to how the juvenile and the sex offender met and ended up together.
The Beckley Police Department said that they would also like to thank the local media and members of the public who shared their posts and provided information during this investigation.
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