A Lake Worth, Florida, man is in jail awaiting extradition to Georgia after authorities say he picked up a 12-year-old Cornelia girl he met online and drove her to Florida.
19-year-old Martin Francisco-Tomas was arrested Wednesday morning after authorities tracked down him and the girl at a residence in Palm Beach County.
The young girl went missing Tuesday, July 14, around 11 a.m. when her family says they thought she went out to run a routine errand. She never returned home. At approximately 8 o’clock that night the family reported her disappearance to the Cornelia Police Department.
State investigators were called in to help search for the girl.
“Throughout the night, agents and investigators learned that the missing child likely left her home to meet a subject authorities believe she met online,” says GBI spokesperson Nelly Miles. They determined the subject, later identified as Francisco-Tomas, traveled to Cornelia and took the child with him to Florida.
Miles credits the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and its “dedicated assistance” and information learned by investigators with helping them to find the girl.
Francisco-Tomas was taken into custody and booked into the Palm Beach County jail to await extradition to Georgia. He’s being held on Georgia warrants for interstate interference with custody. The GBI says additional charges are expected.
At last report, the girl was safe in Palm Beach County with local authorities.
The investigation is still active and ongoing. Upon completion of the investigation, Miles says the case will be provided to the Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney for prosecution.
