“Oh My God, That’s Her!” – Alert to Rescue: The Real Stories Behind AMBER Alerts

AMBER Alerts have changed the game for child safety. The idea is simple: get the public involved so we can all be on the lookout and help save a child’s life. 

While AMBER Alerts have helped save hundreds of abducted children, the stories behind the scenes don’t always make the news. But these days, with cameras everywhere and video in the palm of your hand, we’re now seeing an inside glimpse of how these life-saving stories unfold. Check out these two incredible recoveries:

Credit: Camelback Moving/Dash Cam

Kevin Place and his colleagues at Camelback Moving company in Avondale, Arizona, were starting their morning at their QuikTrip convenience store, just like they always do. Typically, they’d chat with QT security guard Skyler Emmons, but this morning, Place heard him on the phone with police.  

A child had just come into the store with a woman to use the restroom who looked like the 2-year-old girl Emmons had seen in an AMBER Alert the day before. He secretly snapped her photo and showed it to Place, who also recognized her. He ran outside to tell fellow movers in one of the vans. 

“Oh my God, that’s her!” said Ralph Vollmert, in the passenger seat, pulling up the AMBER Alert on his cellphone and showing the driver. “That’s the little girl who just walked past me.”  

Place took a photo of the woman’s license plate in case she took off, and the movers came up with a plan: They’d nonchalantly block her pick-up truck with their three moving vans.  

The movers pretended not to notice the woman glaring at them. A few nerve-racking minutes later, police cruisers descended on the scene. Police said the parents, grateful to the Good Samaritans, had given the homeless woman a place to stay, then she took off with their child. 

After the child’s rescue, the security guard and eight movers were showered with Good Samaritan awards and gifts from a grateful public. Proud of his crew, Camelback President Chad Olsen said, “They’re all dads.”

Credit: Jawohn Green

Jawohn Green, 19, and two college friends were heading to Target in Upper Marlboro when an AMBER Alert lit up their cellphones in unison. A 1-year-old boy had just been abducted, and police were looking for a gray 2022 Volkswagen SUV.  

Soon after, a vehicle matching that description passed them on the right. Their adrenaline started racing. The SUV merged into the lane in front of them, and they verified the license plate. 

Green began recording and called Maryland State Police, as the teenagers screamed with excitement. Police recovered the 1-year-old child safely and arrested the driver, a family member. 

“I was thinking, this is crazy,” said Green, whose video received more than 1 million likes when he posted it on TikTok. “I hope people will pay attention to AMBER Alerts. You never know.” 

(Look closely at these AMBER Alerts and call 911 if you’ve seen any of these children: https://www.ncmec.org/blog/2026/amber-alert-awareness-day-30-years-later-ambers-legacy-still-protects-children)