A girl who was abducted at the age of nine has been found alive and well after a local shopkeeper recognised her from a Netflix documentary. Kayla Unbehaun disappeared in 2017 and the case was featured on the streaming platform's Unsolved Mysteries series.
Kayla's father, Ryan Iskerka, had full custody of her at the time of her disappearance and informed the police she was missing after finding Kayla wasn't at her mother's house in South Elgin, Illinois on July 5, 2017. His daughter had been kidnapped by her "non-custodial" mum Heather Unbehaun, who went on the run with her for years.
However, just last weekend, while shopping Asheville, North Carolina, a shop owner recognised Kayla from the Netflix documentary. He immediately called the police and now Kayla's mum is being held on a $250,000 bond, charged with child abduction.
Kayla, who is now aged 15, is currently in protective custody and her dad Ryan has been told she been found alive and well. In statement after being reunited with his daughter, Mr Iskerka said: 'I'm overjoyed that Kayla is home safe.
"I want to thank @ElginPDFD, the National Centre for Missing & Exploited Children and all of the law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case. We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning."
This case comes six months after a DNA test confirmed the identify of a Texan woman who was abducted as a toddler 51 years ago.
Melissa Highsmith, now 53, was taken from her home at just 22 months old. The woman who raised her was in fact her kidnapper, but only told Melissa she wasn't hers recently.
Melissa was eventually reunited with her biological parents Jeffrie Highsmith and Alta Alpantenco and her four siblings over half a century after their babysitter ran off with Melissa.
