HALL COUNTY, Ga. — Nearly two months after a 12-year-old girl was reported missing in Hall County, she has finally been found safe.
Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch said Maria Gomez-Perez was located Thursday in Dover, Ohio, with 34-year-old Antonio Agustin-Ailon, whom she is believed to have met online. She is expected to be back in Georgia on Friday.
Investigators believe Gomez-Perez had been communicating with the man via Facebook and had told him she was unhappy and wanted to leave home. Despite the communication, Sheriff Couch reiterated that "Maria is the victim."
Authorities said the man drove from Ohio to Gainesville, Georgia, on May 29, picked Gomez-Perez up, and then traveled back to his home in Dover, Ohio. He was arrested and taken into custody.
Sheriff Couch said Gomez-Perez had recently reached out to her father online to let him know that she was safe and did not want to return home. Deputies were able to find Maria by tracking the IP address of the device she used to contact her father, which led to her rescue.
“Technology can be a wonderful thing. It helped us locate Maria,” Sheriff Couch said. “But technology can also be used for evil. It’s why Maria was able to leave Gainesville with a stranger and travel nine hours from her home. So, please know what your children are doing and who they’re communicating with. They’re our most vulnerable citizens, and we need to keep them safe.”
Gomez-Perez was last seen on May 29 in the driveway of her home on Westside Drive and was reported missing a day later on May 30. In the months since, numerous law enforcement agencies, her family and community members have worked tirelessly to help find Gomez-Perez and bring her home.
Photos: Maria Gomez-Perez
The Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio said Hall County deputies reached out to them on Wednesday, July 24 about the missing girl. That's when detectives there launched an investigation. In a news release, Tuscarawas County authorities said Hall County sent four investigators to Ohio.
"The investigators were able to track the phone to the Dover City Park area where they made visual contact with Maria and (Agustin-Ailon)," the Ohio news release said. "When the two got into a vehicle and traveled to a nearby shopping center parking lot, they, along with members of the Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Office followed. They recovered Maria at the scene."
Agustin-Ailon is being held in Ohio on criminal charges. Captain Adam Fisher of the Tuscarawas County Sheriff's Office also said Immigration and Customs Enforcement has placed an immigration detainer on Agustin-Ailon.
Fisher said their office executed a search warrant at the suspect's home on Friday evening. He said investigators determined the suspect was living at the home alone with Maria Gomez-Perez. Fisher said after Maria Gomez-Perez was located, authorities had someone trained in forensic interviewing speak with her.
Fisher said their office wants Hall County Sheriff's Office to have priority over the investigation. Based on Agustin-Ailon's own admissions during their interview following his arrest, according to the Tuscarawas County Sheriff's Office, authorities there do plan on filing felony charges.
Agustin-Ailon is now awaiting extradition, which could be on Monday at the earliest. The investigation is ongoing.
11Alive reached out to ICE several times Friday night for additional information on the immigration detainer but has not heard back yet.
Photos: Maria Gomez-Perez
"Maria is safe and OK," the Hall County Sheriff's Office said on social media Thursday night. "The tireless work of our CIB, law enforcement partners and the community has resulted in the best possible outcome,” Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch said. “Our prayers for Maria’s safe return have been answered.”
There was a $50,000 reward being offered to anyone who could help find Maria.
This is a developing story. Check back often for new information.
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