BREAKING NEWS: Missing 5-year-old LA girl found SAFE after six years

Just three months after the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) released a new age progression of a missing child, she has been found safe in North Carolina. Karen Rojas was five years old when she was reported missing from her home in Los Angeles in 2020.

NCMEC has been working closely with local and state officials since the case began six years ago to find the missing child, who is now 11 years old. The child’s mother — who had custody — stopped communicating with Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and was believed to have taken the child, according to authorities.

In a press release, a North Carolina sheriff’s office announced today that the girl, Karen Rojas, has been found “SAFE!”  The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said they were able to find the child who was enrolled in their school system under an alias. She has been taken into protective custody. 

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said they were acting on information given to them yesterday from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office and the DCFS. No one has been arrested.

Karen was reported missing from her home on June 2, 2020 in Duarte, California. NCMEC released an age progression in December of what Karen might look like today.

“These are very rare occurrences to have such a positive outcome on such an old case as this, but it reminds us that through hard work, and dedication and cooperation, stories with positive outcomes like these can happen,” said the Washington County Sherif’s Office.

Washington County Sheriff’s Office thanked the multiple agencies from California and in North Carolina for the assistance and cooperation leading to the safe recovery.

This is a developing story.