BARTOW, FLA. mdash; A teenage girl was found after she sneaked out of her house to rendezvous with a high-risk sex offender she met on , a sheriff said Tuesday.
The 15-year-old was found safe and well in the Florida Panhandle a day after she disappeared, but the man accused of running off with her was still at large, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said.
Judd pleaded for any tips to find suspect William Joe Mitchell, 46, of Jacksonville, who was believed to have a handgun.
Mitchell met the girl online and cultivated a relationship, Judd said. She believed Mitchell was 24, Judd told CNN.
The teenager was found at a Wal-Mart, where Mitchell apparently dropped her off, Judd said. She had sneaked out of her house in Bartow to meet Mitchell at about 3 a.m. Monday and was reported missing a little more than three hours later, Judd said. She had told her friends she was running away “for love,” he said.
The Associated Press
