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FBI Joins Search for 3-Year-Old North Carolina Girl Who Disappeared From Her Home

2 minute read

The FBI has joined the search for a three-year-old girl who disappeared from her home Sunday night.

Mariah Woods of Jacksonville, N.C. was last seen after her mother put her to bed around 11 p.m., according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The FBI is now working with state and local authorities in order to locate the missing girl, according to ABC affiliate WCTI.

“[Officials are] working everything that can be worked to find this little girl,” Jacksonville Sheriff Hans Miller said during a press conference Monday.

“We don’t know what happened,” Miller added. “It’s entirely premature to try to determine what happened.”

Mariah’s mother, Kristy Woods, made a tearful plea at the press conference.

“Please, bring her back . . . She’s my baby, she’s my everything,” she said. “Just to be able to touch her and hold her and not let her go again. I’d give anything.”

An amber alert was issued shortly after Mariah Woods was reported missing around 6 a.m. Monday morning, Miller said. Mariah Woods is described as a white female with brown hair and blue eyes standing at roughly 2 feet 9 inches and weighing 30 pounds.

Local law enforcement has already conducted a search behind the Woods’ home and the surrounding areas, WCTI reported. A helicopter and drones were used to aide in the search.

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