A kidnapped girl has been found in Mexico 12 years after she was abducted.
Sabrina Allen, now 17, was snatched in April 2002 by mum Dara Llorens who was divorced from the girl's father Greg Allen.
The operation to find the teenager included investigators following up hundreds of leads and the case was profiled twice on the television show “America’s Most Wanted.”
Llorens, who abducted Sabrina in Austin, Texas, assumed a new identity and moved frequently to evade capture, according to the FBI.
But Mr Allen was determined to find her and at one point moved to Mexico and learned Spanish to assist in the hunt.
But Llorens is said to have been a shrewd operator, often dying Sabrina's hair a different
colour to help keep her identity hidden.
It is believed she spent most of her time indoors and did not attend school.
FBI agents assisted in the hunt for the girl. The pair were found on Tuesday morning in a small town on the outskirts of the Mexican capital.
She has since been flown back to Austin, Texas, and is being assessed by psychiatrists who will decide when she is ready to meet her father again.
“It was a big relief... now we get to start the healing process," said Mr Allen, who has since remarried.
"I'm going to ask her if I can give her a hug. She's in pretty bad shape, is my understanding, so I just pray for healing."
Asked about when he would be reunited with Sabrina, he added: "We don't have a timetable.
"We're very eager to have her home as soon as possible, and we're going to slowly introduce family members and do what we can."
Mr Allen said Lloren told his daughter he was a wife beater and child molester to explain their life on the run.
According to charging documents, Llorens, now 44, took the child for a scheduled weekend visit on April 19, 2002, as part of a court-ordered custody arrangement.
She failed to return the child to the father, who had primary custody, at the end of the weekend.
Llorens was captured by agents with the Mexican Federal Police, the US Department of Justice and the U.S. Marshals Service after receiving a tip-off from a confidential informant.
Llorens was wanted on warrants that include interference with child custody and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
One Mexican police officer sustained a minor injury during the arrest.
Investigators followed up on hundreds of leads and tips over the 12-year search, and the case was profiled twice on the television show “America’s Most Wanted.
Source: Uk Mirror
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