Photo: Alphotographic / E+ / Getty Images
A Chicago teenager who vanished four years ago has been found alive in Virginia, ending a long-running missing child case that began outside a movie theater on June 23, 2022. Authorities say the girl, who was 15 at the time, had left Milwaukee for Chicago to meet a man she had communicated with online for several years. That man, identified as 37-year-old Owen Anderson, is now facing multiple charges including kidnapping, child abduction, and child enticement.
According to WMAQ, the girl’s parents quickly realized something was wrong when her phone went straight to voicemail the day she disappeared. Family members criticized Milwaukee police for what they saw as a slow response and said they were the ones who gathered key video evidence from neighborhood cameras. Despite their efforts, the search went on for four years.
The girl, now 19, was found in a small home in Blacksburg, Virginia, after law enforcement responded to a 911 call about a domestic disturbance. She initially did not identify herself but later told police her real name and shared that she had been held against her will.
Investigators say Anderson, who started talking to the girl when she was 12, groomed her online and convinced her to leave home by promising safety and care. He arranged for her to take a ride-share to meet him in Chicago, where he disposed of her phones before driving her to Virginia. The teen told officers she was physically and sexually abused during her captivity and was not allowed to attend school. When Anderson was arrested, police found two pistols, 14 loaded magazines, knives, and pepper spray.
Milwaukee County authorities recently filed kidnapping and child abduction charges against Anderson, who remains in custody in Virginia and has not yet appeared in Wisconsin court. Milwaukee police have stated there is no evidence the girl was a victim of organized human trafficking.
Anderson is expected to face multiple felony charges in court, while the victim is now receiving support and reunited with her family. The investigation continues as law enforcement works to piece together the details of her ordeal.