A North Carolina A man has been arrested after waiting three weeks to file a missing report for his 11-year-old stepdaughter.
Madalena Cojocari has not been seen since the evening of November 23, when she was last seen at her home in Cornelius, North Carolina.
More than three weeks passed before the 11-year-old’s parents reported her missing on December 15 to a school resource officer at Bailey Middle School.
A major search is now underway to trace the missing girl, who is still unaccounted for and concerns are growing for her safety. The FBI and SBI have now joined the search.
On Saturday morning, Cornelius police announced that they had arrested Madalena’s stepfather, Christopher Palmiter, on charges of failing to report a child missing to law enforcement.
Mr Palmiter, 60, is being held at the Mecklenburg County Detention Center on $100,000 bond.
It is not clear why the family waited more than three weeks to raise the alarm about the girl’s disappearance or whether Mr. Palmiter is cooperating with the law enforcement investigation.
Madalina was last seen wearing jeans, pink, purple and white Adidas shoes and a white T-shirt and jacket.
Madalina Cojocari has not been seen since the evening of 23 November
(Cornelius PD)
He is described as having brown hair and brown eyes, 4 feet 10 inches tall, and weighing approximately 90 pounds.
Anyone with information on Madalina’s whereabouts is asked to call the Cornelius Police Department at 704-892-7773.