UPDATE: Sheriff Wesley Holt says Zella was found safe Friday afternoon.
UPDATE (11/27) — Greene County Sheriff Wesley Holt told News Channel 11’s Kaylyn Kluck Friday morning that officers believe that 3-year-old Zella Linklater was taken by her grandmother.
According to Holt, officers “know that [the grandmother] walked into the woods with [Zella].”
Holt told News Channel 11 these woods are located at the Horse Creek area near Cherokee National Forest off of Bumblebee Lane.
Officers first received the call before 3 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 26.
The grandmother had Zella while her parents were out of town, and Zella’s parents were “trying to get the child back,” Holt said.
Per Holt, the parents saw the grandmother driving with the child. When the grandmother noticed the parents were behind her, “she jumps out of the car with the child and takes off into the woods.”
“At this point, we don’t know what state of mind the grandmother is in or where the grandmother went with this child,” Holt said. “She could be in the woods; she could’ve gotten a ride out of here — be somewhere else.”
The Greene County Sheriff’s Office, along with the TBI, continues the search for Zella.
Agencies have used drones in the search for Zella, and the search continues Friday a couple of miles into Cherokee National Forest.
If you have any information, call 1-800-TBI-FIND or the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.
GREENE COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) – The TBI has issued an endangered child alert for a 3-year-old from Greene County.
According to the TBI, they are looking for Zella Linklater.
According to authorities, she was last seen in the Bumblebee Lane area of Chuckey.
Zella Linklater is described as 3’6” and weighs about 50 pounds. She has blonde hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing a red dress and snow boots.
If you have any information, call 1-800-TBI-FIND or the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.
