SEARCH ON IN SEVILLE FOR
MISSING 1-YEAR-OLD GIRL
The
Volusia County Sheriff’s Office has launched a search in
Seville for a missing 1-year-old child. Although the girl --
Lupita Gonzalez -- was just reported missing early Saturday
morning, Sheriff’s investigators believe she may have been
gone now for more than 24 hours. And the manner in which the
disappearance was reported to the Sheriff’s Office is
causing investigators to suspect that there could be
suspicious circumstances.
The initial call reporting
Lupiea as missing originally came in to Putnam County, but
was transferred to Volusia County at 4:42 a.m. after it was
discovered that the child had gone missing in Seville in the
extreme northwest section of Volusia. The caller told
dispatchers that he went to a party in Seville on Thursday
and got drunk. He seemed confused and said he couldn’t
remember much and thought he might still be drunk. But from
what he could remember, there was a little girl at the party
and now he doesn’t know what happened to her. The last time
she was seen was Friday morning.
Numerous Sheriff’s deputies
along with investigators are searching for the child, while
a Sheriff’s Office helicopter is flying over the area to
help in the search. Bloodhounds also have been dispatched to
the scene, and a missing child telephone alert has been sent
to residents in the area. A specially-trained regional CART
Team, or Child Abduction Response Team, also is responding
to assist in the search. Lupiea is Hispanic and has black,
curly hair. She was last seen near Lawrence Street in
Seville, wearing a pink shirt and black or brown pants.
Anyone who spots the girl or who has information on her
whereabouts is asked to call the Volusia County Sheriff’s
Office at (386) 736-5999. Anyone who has information and
prefers to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers of
Northeast Florida, toll-free, at (888) 277-TIPS. Callers to
Crime Stoppers can qualify for a reward of up to $1,000
Update #2 - 4:09 p.m.
Lupita Gonzalez was located at
3:20 p.m. under a bush in a field. She was walking and
talking and appeared to be physically OK, but she is being
taken to a hospital to be checked out. She was located after
the reporting party, 23-year-old Carlos Rivera, disclosed to
investigators the general location of where he had left the
girl. An extensive search was conducted in that area and the
girl was found.
Rivera was at a part Thursday
night at 305 Lawrence Street where illegal drugs were being
consumed. The child and her mother, 30-year-old Leah Wiley,
were also at the party. At some point Friday morning Rivera
walked away from the house where the party was being held
with the child. He did not give any reason for why he left
the girl in the field where she was found. Both Rivera and
Wiley have been arrested. Their charges will be released
later.
Update #3 - 9:18 p.m.
After completing the
investigation, the Sheriff’s Office has charged
23-year-old Carlos Rivera of Crescent City with
kidnapping and child abuse. He’s also being held on
three open warrants out of Putnam County for failure to
appear in court on charges of grand theft, DUI and
driving without a valid license. During questioning,
Rivera told investigators that he had paid 30-year-old
Leah Wiley of Astor to have sex with her. But he said
that he got mad because the sex was interrupted when
Wiley was called to another room, so he decided to take
her daughter and leave the house. With no food, water or
other provisions, Rivera took off with Wiley’s daughter
at approximately 7 a.m. on Friday. The two walked across
U.S. Highway 17 and headed north along the railroad
tracks. Along the way, Rivera worried that he might get
in trouble for taking the girl. So he abandoned her in a
field near a wooded area and then walked back to the
highway and got a ride back to Putnam County. The child
was located Saturday afternoon following an extensive
search, more than 30 hours into the ordeal, after Rivera
drew a map for Sheriff’s investigators of the route he
took with the girl and also pointed out on an aerial map
the approximate location where he thought he had left
the child. The child was recovered about two miles away
from the house on Lawrence Street where she had been
taken.
Wiley, the child’s mother,
was charged with child neglect for failing to make any
effort to report her daughter as missing to law
enforcement. Wiley said she suspected Rivera had taken
the girl, but didn’t report her as missing because he
didn’t want the child’s father to find out that she had
sex with Rivera. Both defendants have been transported
to the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach.
The Florida Department of
Children and Families has taken custody of the child and
Wiley’s two other children.
