A missing 12-year-old Dewey girl was reunited with her family Monday evening after Yavapai County Sheriff’s deputies located her south of Mayer High School.
Deputies were told the girl normally takes a bus from Mayer Elementary School to the high school, where she then catches a relay bus to Dewey. However, she never showed up at the Dewey drop-off location. The high school principal later told deputies that some students said they saw her walking south, away from the high school after she got off the initial bus.
YCSO and family members began an extensive search of the Spring Valley area, when deputies were later alerted that the girl had called her sister, saying she was lost in an area creek bed. After losing cell service for a few minutes, the girl called 911 and authorities were able to determine an approximate cell phone location. A deputy responding to that location found a locked fence at the end of a road, and when he activated his lights and siren the girl spotted the patrol vehicle and walked to its location. The young lady told deputies she just wanted to go for a walk alone and got turned around.
A few hours after she was initially reported missing, the girl, who was not injured, was reunited with family at the high school.