Maria Gomez-Perez found safe in Ohio, Guatemalan national arrested

HALL COUNTY, Ga. – After a nearly 60-day search, Hall County authorities say 12-year-old Maria Gomez-Perez has been found safe and a suspect is in custody.

Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch said that the missing girl was found in Dover, Ohio on Thursday and should be coming home on Friday.

“The tireless work of our CIB, law enforcement partners and the community has resulted in the best possible outcome,” Couch said. “Our prayers for Maria’s safe return have been answered.” 

Maria was last seen at her home on Westside Drive in Gainesville on May 29. The Hall County Sheriff’s Office had followed leads in South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, Alabama, Texas, Illinois and Maryland, but they all came up short. The FBI, GBI, Homeland Security, and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division assisted in the search. 

SEE ALSO: Maria Gomez-Perez’s father: ‘Trust God that he will bring my daughter back’

According to Couch, Gomez-Perez was found at a shopping center with a 34-year-old Guatemalan native Antonio Agustin. 

Investigators believe that the girl had been talking with Agustin and other adult men for a while on Facebook Messenger and other apps.

“Maria had indicated that she was unhappy, and she would like to leave home,” Couch said. 

Authorities say that Agustin drove down to Georgia to meet Gomez-Perez at her house on May 29 and that the two of them have been in Ohio ever since. 

Couch said a breakthrough in the case happened last week when Gomez-Perez contacted her father on Facebook Messenger on a new account, telling him that she was OK and that he should stop looking for her.

Detectives were able to track the IP address used in those messages to a phone in Ohio. 

Augustin was being held in custody in Ohio for rape, but has not formally been charged. Couch said multiple felony charges are possible in the case.

Antonio Augustin (Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Office)

A $50,000 reward for her safe return was established by law enforcement and community members. Couch said it will not be claimed due to the nature of how they found Gomez-Perez.

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