Yuba County infant found safe. Abduction triggered Amber Alert in Northern California

A 7-month-old girl suspected of being abducted was found safe a few hours after the California Highway Patrol issued an Amber Alert for six counties in the greater Sacramento area on Thursday morning.

The Yuba County Sheriff’s Office said it had been searching for the girl, who was taken by a man at Boardwalk Drive and Poppy Way in Linda, not far from Edgewater Circle and Erle Road. The law enforcement agencies, which posted the emergency message at 3:20 a.m., said the infant was abducted and believed to be in danger.

Lance Colon was arrested in connection with the girl’s disappearance, according to information provided just after 11 a.m. by Yuba County Sheriff’s Office, who had requested the Amber Alert. Deputies described Colon as a “stepfather figure,” and not the girl’s biological father.

Katy Goodson, a spokeswoman for the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office, said the girl and Colon were located at a home in Rancho Cordova and that Colon was arrested without incident.

According to authorities, deputies received a call from Colon’s ex-girlfriend just after midnight saying she and Colon were in a fight and he left her home with the girl. Investigators had established “communication” with Colon by 10 a.m., Goodson said.

The Amber Alert extended beyond Yuba County to Yolo, Sutter, Placer, Nevada and Sacramento counties and was seen on message signs across the capital region during the morning commute.

“A cellphone alert was held off due to the early hour and direction of the investigation,” Goodson said.

Colon was booked into Sacramento County Main Jail and was expected to face charges including kidnapping charges domestic violence and intimidating a witness. Authorities said he also was under a previous felony warrant. He is likely to be arraigned Tuesday.

“We are so relieved this was resolved without anyone being harmed,” Goodson said. “Our deputies and detectives worked around the clock to locate this child and, fortunately, she was found safe.”

What is an Amber Alert?

The system (the acronym AMBER stands for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) was created by the California Legislature in 2002 to notify communities about missing children and other at-risk persons after 9-year-old Amber Hagerman was abducted and murdered in Texas in 1996. It was brought to California after a similar incident involving 5-year-old Samantha Runnion in 2002 — placing focus on the need for such a program in the state.

When the CHP celebrated 20 years of the program in 2022, officials said the system boasts a 97% success rate of locating children in danger.

This Amber Alert, the first for the Sacramento area since the disappearance and subsequent death of Kiely Rodni, happened just days before the introduction of the new Ebony Alert program on Jan. 1.

It works similarly to the Amber Alert system, which activates electronic highway signs to post information about the missing person in a coordinated effort to locate the individual. The Ebony Alert, will be used for missing Black youth ages 12-25.

Amber Alerts used to be broadcast through the National Weather Service, but the CHP has since partnered with FEMA to use their Integrated Public Alert and Warning System.

What’s the public’s role in Amber Alert?

The CHP lists the following advice on how people can help trigger and respond to the alerts.

▪ If you witness a child abduction, call 911 immediately to report it quickly. Be sure to make note of important information such as the physical characteristics of the child and suspect, the make and model of any vehicles involved (including license plate numbers if possible), and the precise location of the abduction.

▪ If you hear an Amber Alert, watch for the child, suspect and vehicle described in the alert. Immediately report any sightings by calling 911 or the telephone number included with the alert. (Do not call 911 to request information about the abduction.)