A 12-year-old disappeared from her Nampa home. Family fears internet stranger involved
Nampa police are searching for a missing 12-year-old girl who may have met up with a stranger she met online.
Payton Murrieta was last seen by her family in the early morning hours of Friday at her home in the Ranch subdivision near Caldwell and North Midland boulevards in Nampa, her mother, Ali Devonne, told the Idaho Statesman.
“Her family is concerned that she has connected with an unknown adult online and may be with them,” the Nampa Police Department posted on social media.
Devonne said she turned to her daughter’s phone for clues after she went missing. She couldn’t unlock the phone but was able to see notifications for a dating website on the locked screen, Devonne told the Statesman in a message. She and her husband created a fake account on that website and found her daughter’s profile, which claimed her daughter was 18, Devonne said.
Her mother said waking up in the morning has become difficult, knowing it means another day without her daughter.
“Every night, before I go to bed, I want to tell her ‘good night’ and I love her, and she’s not here to do that,” Devonne told the Statesman in a message.
If there were one thing Devonne said she wishes she could tell her daughter, it would be to come home.
“Remember, whatever situation you are in, there is nothing that would change my love for you,” Devonne said. “And I’m here! I’m waiting for you.”
Most of the family has taken time off work to look for Payton. Maxie Smith, a friend of Devonne’s, has created a verified GoFundMe to support the family members and help with lost income while they search for Payton. Devonne works at a local restaurant, according to the fundraiser, and “has dedicated everything to help find her.”
Devonne said she gave Payton’s phone to police as part of the investigation. Payton’s last text to her mother was to thank her and tell her she loves her, “my beautiful mom.”
The Nampa Police Department said it did not have any updates on Payton’s case as of Tuesday afternoon.
Police said Payton is 5 feet, 0.5 inches, weighs 125 pounds, and has brown eyes and hair dyed a dark red. Nampa police asked anyone with information about Payton’s disappearance to call the department at 208-465-2257, option 1.
