TEMPLE, Texas — The Temple Police Department revealed that mental health issues appear to be what led to the disappearance of a 7-year-old girl and her mother on Tuesday, June 27.
According to police, at about 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, a Temple resident reported a suspicious car in their driveway to police. The resident said they had received a notification from their doorbell camera of someone trying to make contact at the home.
Police say the officer on the scene began investigating the car, and received initial reports of mental health issues involving one of the potential occupants of the car.
After receiving these reports, the officer contacted family members of the occupants who told police that they had been looking for the car, despite not reporting it to law enforcement, police say.
According to police, the officer spoke with a neighbor of the Temple resident who first contacted police and learned that the occupants of the car, the 7-year-old girl and her mother, were last seen walking into a wooded area near the railroad tracks in the 3100 block of North 12th Street at about 11:23 a.m.
Police say the investigating officer contacted his supervisor to begin the missing person investigation at about 4:24 p.m.
The Temple Police Department says officers, detectives and outside agencies were called in to assist in this search. The department utilized drones and a helicopter from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to help cover the 78 acres of wooded area they were searching.
According to police, the intense search went through land and air as officers went door-to-door and traveled by foot in the woods through the excessive heat warning in the area.
Texas DPS sent out a local AMBER Alert at about 10:49 p.m. and the search was ultimately suspended approximately 10 minutes later. However, officers stayed in the area throughout the night.
According to police, at about 7 a.m. on Wednesday, June 28, a detective with Temple PD got a call from a family member of the missing mother and daughter, saying that they had received a call from the mother using a bystander's phone.
Police say the family member gave the detective the mother and daughter's location in the 3300 block of North 3rd Street, which was about half a mile from their last known location.
Emergency medical services were sent to the location to treat the two, the mother was taken into custody on an Emergency Detention Order, and the 7-year-old girl was released to family members, police say.
Temple Police Chief Shawn Reynolds stated, "We are grateful for the positive outcome in this situation and appreciate the support from our community and partner agencies."
"This is an excellent reminder that mental health can impact us all. I would encourage everyone to seek Mental Health First Aid training or call your local police department or mental health facility if a family member is experiencing a crisis," Reynolds added.
According to police, potential charges are possible as this is an active criminal investigation.
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