According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons Database, more than 600,000 people go missing nationwide per year. Currently, there are over
317 missing persons in Illinois alone. That’s about 2.5 missing individuals out of 100,000 people. That’s a lot of missing persons, but these Illinois statistics are superseded by California, Florida and Texas. Our case today delves into the missing persons investigation of a young 15 year old girl from Montana, who ended up in Chicago. How did she end up in Chicago alone, and why?
The Case
RGH was contacted by a local Montana Sheriff to search for this young girl in Chicago and bring her home. He started the investigations in Montana, which led him to Chicago through following the location of the young girl’s cell phone. The Sheriff hired RGH Investigations with the help of the Chicago Police to find the girl and bring her home. To start, RGH launched a missing persons investigation into the girl’s disappearance.
The Search
The Montana Sheriff previously pinged the missing girl’s cell phone location to the Chicagoland area, which started our investigation. The Sheriff gave us an idea as to what the situation looked like: The girl was likely taken by a young man. We had some rough photos of what both suspects looked like. We went around the pinged area, knocking from door to door and showing each person what information we had. No one in the area knew or had seen either of them. Unsuccessful in our search, we reported back to the Montana Sheriff. He was still suspicious… the girl’s phone was pinged to the location, and should be around. The Sheriff asked us for a more in depth investigation. He asked for a steakout.
The Steakout
Our team set out around the pinged location, we had several vehicles and investigators around the area. We sat and watched for two days. On the first day, we saw nothing. On the second day, at around 3pm, we caught sight of a male that roughly matched the photo exiting one of the buildings with a young girl. We followed them to McDonalds. They ordered some food, and we watched from an inconspicuous seat. As the girl pulled down her mask to eat, we immediately realized she was the suspect we were looking for.
Home Safe
Immediately upon realization, we quietly notified the Montana Sheriff by text. Law enforcement quickly arrived at McDonald’s. Both suspects were questioned, the girl calm when giving information. The male suspect was found to be around 20 years old. The girl told law enforcement that her and the male suspect were in a relationship. She had left with him to Chicago voluntarily. Law enforcement found out that she was a prostitute and was likely persuaded by the man to leave her home in Montana. Thanks to our missing persons investigation, she was returned home safely.
Do you, or someone you know, need help locating a missing person? RGH Investigations will help start your missing persons investigation. Contact us at (312)-981-8770.
