ISLIP, N.Y. (TCN) — An anonymous tip reportedly helped a concerned father locate his missing 14-year-old daughter on a boat several weeks after she was believed to have been kidnapped from her neighborhood.
The 14-year-old victim was reported missing to the Suffolk County Police Department on Dec. 9 after she left her house in East Patchogue. The teen’s father, Frank Gervasi, told WNYW-TV that the girl walked outside to look for something, and she “left with no shoes on and it was pouring rain. It didn’t look like she was intending on leaving.” WPIX-TV reports surveillance footage showed the victim getting into a dark-colored sedan, though it was not known if she entered the car with her consent.
Gervasi said, “I believe that she might have left willingly to get something out of a car and maybe got pulled in at that point.”
Gervasi, his wife, their family, and members of the community searched for the teen for weeks. He said there was “no stopping until I find her and that’s just the way it’s gonna be.”
According to GreaterLongIsland.com, a break in the case occurred over the weekend when Gervasi received a call from a woman who said his daughter was on a boat in Islip. Gervasi said the woman who contacted him “was afraid to go in the boat.” Gervasi went to the dock in Islip and said he “did clear the boat,” but no one else was in it when he got there except for his daughter.
Gervasi said his daughter is “in a facility right now getting the help she needs and is safe.”
He shared, “Emma has a long road of recovery ahead of her, and we’re going to do everything possible to get her the help she needs.”
WPIX reports Gervasi recorded an Instagram video and spoke about how he believes his daughter was “being held against her will. She was not allowed to leave the boat unless she was escorted by somebody.”
He added that his daughter “was being forced to do things that a 14-year-old girl shouldn’t have to do.” He believes his daughter was the victim of sex trafficking.
Suffolk County Police reportedly arrested a suspect on charges of kidnapping, rape, and endangering the welfare of a child.
Gervasi said following his daughter’s safe return, “God gave me a gift yesterday. Having her safe in my arms was just the most amazing feeling in the world.”
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