Federal authorities said the child had been considered at elevated risk of sex trafficking.
OLYMPIA, Wash. — A child reported missing from Mesa, Arizona, in May was found safe last week inside a large homeless encampment in Olympia after a U.S. Marshals Service investigation, federal officials said.
The recovery followed a June 18 tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that the child may have been a victim of sex trafficking in Washington state. Authorities have not released the child’s name or exact age. Officials said the case moved quickly after a deputy U.S. marshal assigned to missing-child investigations developed information pointing to Olympia.
The search led investigators to the 3200 block of Martin Way East, where a sprawling encampment known as “The Jungle” sits near Interstate 5. Officials described the site as a roughly 20-acre area with a high rate of criminal activity, violence and public safety concerns. U.S. marshals and the Washington State Department of Corrections canvassed the encampment Thursday and located the child there. “Protecting our nation’s children is of the highest importance,” Acting U.S. Marshal Donrien Stephens said.
After the child was found, authorities turned her over to the Olympia Police Department and the Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families for treatment and victim assistance. Federal officials said the child was considered at elevated risk of human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. They did not say whether investigators had confirmed trafficking, whether the child had been abducted or how long she had been in Washington.
The child had been reported missing to Mesa police in May, more than 1,000 miles from Olympia. The U.S. Marshals Service said its missing-child work was expanded under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015, which gave the agency broader authority to help recover endangered missing children even when no fugitive or sex offender case is involved. The agency said it has helped locate or recover 5,281 missing children since the law passed.
Authorities have not announced any arrests tied to the case. Deputy U.S. Marshal Thorin Fash told local media that no arrests had been made as of the latest update. Investigators also have not released details about who the child may have been with, how she traveled from Arizona to Washington or whether other people are being sought.
The Jungle has long drawn concern from nearby residents, businesses and city officials because of crime, fires and safety issues. City officials have said the number of people staying there can vary through the year, with service providers visiting the area to offer food, water, clothing, sanitation and other basic help. The child’s recovery added a new focus to the site as federal and state agencies reviewed what happened.
The case remained active Sunday. Officials said the child was safe and receiving assistance, while investigators continued reviewing the circumstances that brought her from Mesa to Olympia.