A missing 13-year-old has been found in an adult-only prison after lying about her age and name to police.
The girl was arrested for shoplifting at a Dollar General store in Beaver Falls on 18 August.
However, when she was questioned by cops, she decided to give a false name and age.
It got to the point where officials believed she was an adult at 18, which obviously determined where she would be held for the alleged crime.
.webp)
The girl did eventually come clean, saying she was a teenager living in the area – though that wasn’t the end to her lies.
After police told her she would be released to her parents, the 13-year-old claimed she was homeless.
It was until an official at the prison noticed the girl looked extremely similar to a missing person, which led to police releasing her from the adult section of Beaver County jail, according to officials.
Attorney Nate Bible told press on Tuesday (3 September) that the teen’s parents have been informed she is fine and well.
However, they for sure would have been left shocked by where police eventually found her.
The girl’s parents picked her up from prison according to the attorney, while the shoplifting charges against her have been moved to a juvenile court.
Bible said: “It was either a jail employee or an inmate who saw the photo of this juvenile as a missing person and recognized her as being housed in the Beaver County jail.
“Immediately, the deputy warden isolated the juvenile to keep her by herself. They contacted her parents, and her parents came and picked her up.”
The police have received a bit of criticizm for not spotting the girl was using a fake identity and age upon her arrest.
However, Bible has since come out and defended law enforcement, saying: “The officers did everything right and this happens quite frequently where they get a fake name or birthday from people who have warrants in different counties or different states.
“They can’t just let her go because they can’t figure out who she is. I mean she did commit a crime.”
Pittsburgh Police posted missing person information about the girl several weeks ago on August 6.
The Associated Press reports the girl had apparently been seen in the city riding public transport.
