WILLIAMS, Calif. — A woman and her ex-husband were arrested and charged after a 5-year-old girl who was reported missing in Lincoln County, North Carolina, was found in Williams, California.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said the child was taken from her grandmother’s house, according to WSOC. Her grandmother had temporary custody of her due to a current court case.
Investigators said the Department of Social Services contacted the grandmother about the girl on Monday. The Department of Social Services worker said that the girl was taken on April 2, the news outlet reported. The grandmother, identified as Donna Harris, had reportedly contacted her ex-husband, Orion Douglar Memmott, 83, who was in California.
Investigators said that Memmott had flown to Lincoln County. WSOC reported that he returned to California on April 3.
On Monday, deputies contacted the North Carolina Center for Missing Persons about an Amber Alert for the girl but learned that she was last known to be in California and that deputies needed to contact an agency there, the news outlet reported.
The California Highway Patrol sent out an “endangered missing alert” the following day for three counties, according to KRCR. Deputies were able to track Memmott to parts of Nevada and California. He was eventually found in Williams, California.
The 5-year-old girl was found safe and a child services agency in California was working to get her back to her family, according to WSOC.
Harris and Memmott have been charged with the abduction of a child, the news outlet reported.
