A 14-year-old Washington state girl disappeared three weeks ago after leaving a cryptic note for her mother – who had chastised her for texting an older man she met online.
Sarah Merrill, of Mount Vernon, said she last saw her daughter, Ella Jones, in her room on the night of Jan. 5.
The next morning, she realized he was gone, Fox News Digital reported.
Ella’s friends had told her mother that she had been communicating with a man in his late 20s or early 30s on Discord, according to the outlet.
As punishment, Merrill temporarily took away his phone.
On the night of her disappearance, Ella leaves her mother a message that appears to address the matter.
“He wrote a note saying he loved me and he didn’t want to hurt us again,” Merrill told KING5.
The mother, who is appealing for the public’s help in finding her daughter, described the events leading up to the disappearance.
Washington state mother Sarah Merrill is appealing for help in locating her 14-year-old daughter, Ella Jones, who disappeared three weeks ago after leaving a cryptic note. Facebook / Find Ella Jones
“He’s here at bedtime and we have a normal night,” Merrill told Fox News Digital. “He even lay with me before I went to bed. I’m tired because I had a long week at work. And he said, ‘I love you. Good night,’ and left the room.”
He said Ella seemed to know where he was going because she took some of his things.
“The clothes, the hair dryer, my flat iron. … So I immediately went over to his friend’s house and started asking questions,” Merrill told Fox News Digital.
“There’s something wrong… I don’t think he can contact me,” he told the outlet. “He never ran away. We are very close. There’s also not like a fight, and, ‘I hate you mom, and I’m running away’ kind of situations.”
Ella Jones and her mother, Sarah Merrill. Facebook / Sarah Merrill Ella Jones is believed to have communicated with a man on Discord. Facebook / Find Ella Jones
She said she was “completely unaware of the gravity” of her daughter’s interactions with strangers.
“You always have something going on with teenagers to some degree. But, I mean, he’s a really sweet, good-hearted kid. So, as time goes on, more and more kids start to open up. [the online relationship],” Merrill told Fox News Digital.
“A friend has said that he really believes it. And they’re all pretty sure that’s where they think he is,” he added.
“He wrote a note saying he loved me and he didn’t want to hurt us again,” the mother said. Facebook / Sarah Merrill
Merrill said she doesn’t believe her daughter is having a mental health crisis, but that she was taken care of by the stranger, KING 5 reported.
Police could not confirm to the outlet whether they had backed up the mother’s theory.
“As tips come in, we evaluate each of them on their own merits,” said police Lt. David Shackleton to KING 5. “The Internet is great for a lot of things, but it can also be a dangerous place, especially for children.”
Ella is described as being at risk from “online predators.” Facebook / Sarah Merrill
When she left, Ella was believed to be wearing a black hooded top, multi-coloured checkered pajama bottoms and black Nike Air Force One trainers.
He is described as 5 feet, 5 inches tall, with brown hair and weighing about 135 pounds.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is also reaching out to the public for help in locating the teenager.
Police urge anyone with information to call Skagit County Dispatch at 360-428-3211.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
