These two young girls suffered a terrifying experience after they were abducted from a Burger King restaurant this weekend.
Sisters Kylie Horne, 11, and Kylann Harper, four, went missing on Sunday morning (October 15) around 11:52 am.
Local police told the public that they were in “extreme danger”, and began working around the clock to locate the children.
Credit / Michael Smith / Getty.
Though the girls have since been found, the investigation into their bizarre kidnapping is ongoing.
Authorities in George have revealed that the young children disappeared from a Columbus Burger King after being seen with a woman named Mikaela Harrell, a 49-year-old woman whose relationship to the girls is currently unknown, according to the New York Post.
It was later confirmed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) that Harrell had a criminal record relating to previous drug offences – including convictions for possession of methamphetamine, when she was caught with between 28-199 grams of the drug on her. She was on parole from August 2007 to August 2016.
Soon after the girls were reported missing, authorities issued an amber alert, and released a description of what they had been wearing when they disappeared.
Credit / Facebook.
Also in the alert was a description of Harrell’s car – a 2011 Honda CRV SUV that was a blue/gray color. Authorities then claimed that the girls had been moved to another vehicle – a Gold 2004 Lexus. The cars’ licence plate numbers were included in the alert, with authorities stating that Kylie and Kylann were in “extreme danger”.
Kaila Spires, the girls’ mom, was eventually identified as a person of interest in the bizarre case.
By the next morning, Monday October 16, the girls were found safe and sound, as per a statement from the Columbus Police Department. “As of Monday, October 16, 2023, at approximately 11:30 am, both children have been located in the area of South Georgia and are safe,” the statement read. “The investigation is ongoing, and charges could be forthcoming for those involved in the abduction.”
After the young girls were located, police also revealed that the girls’ 39-year-old mother had been taken into custody. She also has a prior criminal record, having been convicted of burglary after breaking into someone’s home.
The investigation is still ongoing.