A 16-year-old girl from New York who went missing after flying to the UK to meet an older man has been found safe by Metropolitan Police. The teenager, from Queens, boarded a flight at JFK Airport on Saturday after allegedly communicating with a British man online.
Police located the girl on Wednesday, working with the National Crime Agency and New York City police. A man has been arrested in connection with the incident. The Met confirmed the US authorities have been informed, but declined to provide details on her location, though US officials reported she was found in Nottingham.
The girl's uncle told NBC News that her parents discovered her missing after returning from work to find the front door open and her clothes gone. They found she had been searching for flights to London on family phone records. The family believes she may have gone to meet an older man her mother had seen her talking to online.
According to her uncle, the girl paid for her ticket in cash and used her Polish passport to board the flight. He described her as an honour student who 'didn't have boyfriends' and expressed disbelief at her disappearance.
