LUMBERTON, NC (WBTW) – Lumberton police held a press conference at the Lumberton Police Department Monday following the reported kidnapping of a 13-year-old girl.
FBI Public Information Officer Shelley Lynch confirms the FBI is assisting with the investigation of the kidnapping of Hania Noelia Aguilar. A press conference held at 12 p.m. Monday revealed the young girl was waiting to go to school when she was abducted.
The North Carolina Department of Public Safety issued an AMBER Alert for a missing 13-year-old abducted from her Lumberton neighborhood Monday morning, police say.
Lumberton Police Captain Terry Parker says a man grabbed 13-year-old Hania Noelia Aguilar from a yard in the Rosewood Mobile Home Park around 6:54 a.m. Monday morning. The man forced Aguilar into a stolen Green 2002 Ford Expedition registered to Velasquez Hernandez of Summerville, SC.
Police say the kidnapping occurred between lots 38 and 39 in the Rosewood Mobile Home Park. The Green 2002 Ford Expedition was last seen leaving the mobile home park. The vehicle has a South Carolina license plate NWS 984.
The AMBER Alert was issued by state officials shortly after 10 a.m.
Witnesses could not describe the suspect other than to say he had a yellow bandana over his face, says Captain Parker. After grabbing the child and forcing her into the stolen SUV, the man drove away.
Aguilar lives at lot 102 3381 Elizabethtown Road in Lumberton.
According to a post on the Lumberton Police Department’s Facebook page, Aguilar is about five feet tall and about 126 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.
Around 6:54 a.m., Aguilar “grabbed her aunt’s keys to crank up her vehicle to prepare to leave for the bus stop,” says the post. “Witnessed by another family member, an unknown male wearing a yellow bandana over his face approached and grabbed Hania Aguilar and forced her into the green 2002 Ford Expedition and fled the area.”
“The vehicle, belonging to Hania Aguilar’s aunt, has South Carolina registration NWS984,” adds the post. “The vehicle has paint peeling from the hood and a Clemson sticker on the rear window. Suspect race and description is not known. Both vehicle and Hania Aguilar are entered into NCIC and an Amber Alert has already been issued.”
A release from the FBI says Aguilar was last seen wearing a blue shirt with flowers and blue jeans. The LPD has set up a special tip line for information that can be reached by calling 910-272-5871.
Investigators with the Lumberton Police Dept., Robeson Co. Sheriff’s Office, FBI agents and SBI agents are following nearly 50 leads, according to a release from the FBI. Additional resources from the North Carolina State Highway Patrol and other agencies are set to join the investigation Tuesday.
Anyone who sees Aguilar or the stolen vehicle is urged to call Sgt. Pete Locklear at the Lumberton Police Department at 910-671-3845 or call 911.
