Amber Alert canceled for missing 6-year-old found safe, case has a Wrightsville connection

Teresa Boeckel, York Daily Record
·2 min read

Update: Pennsylvania State Police say the child has been found safe.

The child and the mother were found in Fairfax County, Virginia during a traffic stop, according to a news release by the Chester County District Attorney's Office. Authorities say a stolen Virginia license plate was on the same vehicle that the mother had fled in with her daughter.

Venessa Gutshall has been charged with kidnapping a minor, unlawful restraint of a minor, endangering the welfare of children and related charges, the release states. She will be extradited to Chester County.

Authorities say Gutshall did not have custody rights to her daughter and was only allowed to see her during supervised visits.

The Amber Alert has been canceled.

Reported earlier:

A woman wanted in an Amber Alert issued for her missing 6-year-old daughter was spotted in Wrightsville on Tuesday night, according to the Chester County District Attorney's Office.

Authorities issued an Amber Alert for Zoe Moss on Tuesday, saying she might be at risk of harm or injury. She was last seen around 6 p.m. at the East Ward Elementary School, 435 Washington Ave., in Downingtown, a news release states.

Zoe and her mother, Venessa Gutshall, were at the school for a court-ordered, non-school-related supervised visit, the release states. The supervisor told police that Gutshall fled with her daughter in a gray 2016 Volkswagen Jetta with a license plate number of KXR-3699.

Gutshall was seen between 7:30 and 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Rivertowne Restaurant & Bar in Wrightsville, the release states.

"It is imperative that we find Zoe Moss immediately because of the potentially dangerous situation she is in with her mother," District Attorney Deb Ryan said in a news release. "... Just because her mother is involved does not mean she is in less danger. Zoe needs the eyes and ears of every adult to bring her to safety."

Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Gutshall, the release states.

Anyone who sees the mother, the girl or the vehicle is asked to call 911, Downingtown Police Chief Howard Holland said in the release.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Mother wanted in Amber Alert of missing girl was seen in Wrightsville