Russian teen, 13, found with 22-year-old man she met online, sent home only a week later
A 13-year-old schoolgirl who disappeared near Serpukhov — and whom investigators would not allow to see her mother — has been allowed to go home, her relatives told the Russian news outlet Msk1.ru.
The girl left home on July 19 and went missing. Residents of her village, along with volunteers and police, joined the search. She was found on July 22 — the third day of the search — 150 kilometers (93 miles) from home, in the company of a 22-year-old man she had reportedly met online.
She was not allowed to go home right away. Natalya, the girl’s mother, told the media that she, too, was initially barred from seeing her daughter. According to Msk1.ru, the girl had been staying at a rehabilitation center, where psychologists and investigators worked with her, until July 29. The mother was allowed to speak with her a day after the girl was found, and several days later, they finally saw each other.
The mother brought the girl home on July 29. “Yes, she’s already home. She’s doing well. She’s better off at home. […] She won’t be going back to the center, but she’ll continue working with psychologists. She says she missed home terribly. Right now she’s getting cleaned up, catching up on sleep, and regaining her strength,” Natalya said.
What happened to the girl while she was missing has not been disclosed, and nothing is known about the man she was found with. “There’s no information about that at all. And I think the Investigative Committee will keep that information, you know, classified right to the end,” Natalya said. She said the young man was “directly” linked to her daughter’s disappearance. Whether he has been charged with anything remains unclear.
The Investigative Committee refused to give Msk1.ru reporters details of the case, saying it could not disclose information from the preliminary investigation.
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