Search continues for missing 14-year-old Livingston girl, Sarah Wade /Found safe!

LIVINGSTON -- A 14-year-old girl disappeared from her Livingston home Wednesday night, prompting an intense search by Merced County sheriff's deputies.
A search-and-rescue crew, a bloodhound and a helicopter searched throughout the night for Sarah Wade, but found no sign of her.
Wade was last seen at her family's Willow Ranch, 11933 W. Rose Ave. She went to turn off the water for horses on the ranch, accompanied by her dog at 8:30 p.m. The dog returned, but Sarah didn't. Family members searched for the girl before finally calling the sheriff's department at 10 p.m., said Deputy Tom MacKenzie, sheriff's spokesman.

Sarah is described as 5-feet-5 inches tall, weighing 120 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a plaid shirt with black or blue jeans. "First we were afraid that maybe she got injured by one of the (horses)," MacKenzie said.
The search-and-rescue crew and a helicopter were called out to help in the search, MacKenzie said.
Thursday morning, the department's K-9 unit brought a 2-year-old bloodhound named Roscoe to the location to help with the search. The dog tracked Sarah's scent for several hundred yards -- then came to a stop and lost the scent, MacKenzie said.
No concrete evidence
Deputy Doug Aue, who oversees Roscoe, said the dog halted on the side of the road. That gave the impression that Sarah may have been picked up by someone.
"That's a lead we are following up on," MacKenzie said. "Right now we don't have any concrete evidence that's true, and right now we just don't know what happened. We don't know if she voluntarily left, if she was abducted or if she suffered some kind of injury and just wandered off."
Sarah is home-schooled and doesn't have a cell phone, he said. Family members told detectives that she rarely ventures off the ranch and that she's not familiar with the surrounding area.
Detectives are following up with friends and family acquaintances with whom she may have been in touch before vanishing, he said.
"She did have a computer so we are checking it to see if maybe she's been in contact with friends," he said.
However, the family told detectives Sarah doesn't have a lot of friends.
Deputies are using Sarah's cowboy boots to help the dog track her scent. The dog followed the scent for about 45 minutes before coming to a stop, Aue said.
If detectives are able to find a piece of clothing or anything belonging to Sarah, the dog will be able to start tracking her scent again from there, he said.
This is the dog's fifth tracking. "So far he's been good," Aue said.
In the past, the dog was able to find the body of a missing man in Livingston underwater using the man's shoes, he said. "Bloodhounds have an extraordinary nose," he said.
Neighbor saddened
Mohinder Sodhir, a family's neighbor, was shocked when he learned Sarah was missing. "It's very, very sad," he said, after coming out of the family's house.
He said he's known the family since the early '90s, and described them as good, hard-working people. The family declined to talk to the media.
Deputies ask anyone with information about her whereabouts to call (209) 385-7445 or (209) 385-7472.
Reporter Yesenia Amaro can be reached at (209) 385-2482, or [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].

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Missing 14-year-old may be with boyfriend, Merced Sheriff's Department says

The Merced County Sheriff's Department believes Sarah Wade, the 14-year-old girl missing from her Livingston home, is with her 17-year-old boyfriend, Christian Graham, who has also gone missing. Detectives think the couple may be in the Modesto area.
Wade was reported missing late Wednesday night after she went to give her horses water on her family's ranch and didn't return. The Sheriff's department conducted a search of the area Wednesday night and Thursday.
Wade is considered "at risk" because of statements she's made about committing suicide, the sheriff's department said in a press release. The investigation has led detectives to Turlock and Modesto.

Wade, 14, who also uses the nickname "Mackenzie," is described as 5-foot-5, 120 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. Graham, a Turlock resident, is described as 5-foot-5, 150 pounds, with brown eyes and brown hair.
Detectives believe Wade and Graham are being helped by friends, because they have no money and have relied on rides from others. "We would like to remind anyone helping them that they are breaking the law, however good their intentions might be," the sheriff's deparment said in the release.
Anyone with information may contact the Merced Sheriff's Office at (209) 385-7445.

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Missing teens Sarah Wade, 14, of Livingston and Graham Christian, 17, Christian Graham of Turlock. (KFSN Photo / Merced County Sheriff's Department)

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Merced County Sheriff's Department now believes Sarah Wade ran away with her boyfriend.

The Sheriff's office detectives division said they followed up on leads Thursday night that lead them to believe Sarah Wade had run away with her boyfriend, Christian Graham, who had also gone missing.

The investigation has led detectives from Livingston to Turlock and Modesto.

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Sarah Wade case: Abductee or runaway?

Posted on February 24, 2012 by Valhall

14-year-old Sarah Wade disappeared Wednesday night and police are still trying to find the young, sheltered girl. Sarah had stepped outside her home, which is on a family-owned ranch hear Livingston, California in Merced county. Reports describe Sarah as being raised in a sheltered environment. She’s homeschooled, has no cell phone, few friends, and rarely ventures away from the family farm. Her family states she is unfamiliar with the rural area around the farm. All of Sarah’s belongings are still in her home.

Sarah went outside around 8:30 pm Wednesday night to turn off the water to the horses. The family dog had gone with her. Sarah did not return. The family began searching for her and after being unable to locate her notified the police. The dog eventually returned. Police came out on Wednesday night with a bloodhound.

Utilizing Sarah’s scent from her boots, the bloodhound tracked Sarah’s movements down a fence line until reaching a road at the backside of the property. At that point, the scent trail ended. On Thursday morning a Rottweiler search dog was brought in and got similar results.

A house near the area where the dogs lost Sarah’s scent was searched and a registered sex offender in the area was questioned. At this time police are stating they have nothing concrete to go on as to whether Sarah was abducted or ran away.

While Sarah is described as not having a cell phone or many friends, she does, surprisingly, have a computer and a Facebook page. Investigators are analyzing her computer activity to see if there is any connection between recent online activity and her disappearance.

Sarah is described as 5′ 5″ tall and weighing about 120 lbs. She was wearing the red and blacked checked hoodie seen in the picture below.

If you have any information that could lead to Sarah’s safe return please contact the Merced County Sheriff’s Office at (209)-385-7472 or (209)-385-7445.

Valhall.

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Sarah Wade, the 14-year-old Livingston girl reported missing Wednesday, was found Friday night at a Ripon home with her boyfriend, 17-year-old Christian Graham of Turlock.
Both teens were unharmed and had been aided by friends the past couple of days.
Deputy Tom MacKenzie, Merced County sheriff's spokesman, said the two missing teens got a ride to Modesto, then walked to Salida.

They eventually made their way to the house of a friend of Graham, MacKenzie said. The family there knew the teens were runaways, and took Graham to the Ripon Police Department while Wade stayed at the house.
Ripon police arrived at the house and picked up Wade, MacKenzie said. Detectives from the Merced County Sheriff's Department also came to Ripon to find out why the two ran away.
There wasn't any evidence of abuse or mistreatment by family, but Wade did admit to having suicidal thoughts, MacKenzie said.
Graham was returned to his mother and Wade was taken to Marie Green Psychiatric Center for care, MacKenzie said.
Wade's disappearance from her family's ranch on 11933 W. Rose Ave. sparked a large search, which included a search and rescue crew, a helicopter and a bloodhound.
She was last seen by her family when she went to turn off water for horses on the ranch with her dog at 8:30 p.m Wednesday. The dog returned, but Wade didn't.
Family members looked for Wade before calling the sheriff's department at 10 that night.
MacKenzie said no charges are being filed against the teens, and they won't be responsible for the costs of the search.
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The family there knew the teens were runaways, and took Graham to the Ripon Police Department while Wade stayed at the house. Ripon police arrived at the house and picked up Wade, MacKenzie said.

really?

Missing Girl Found; Put into Psychiatric Care

Fourteen-year-old missing girl Sarah Wade was found safe this weekend with her 17-year-old boyfriend Christian Graham. The young girl vanished in the middle of last week without a word to her parents, which sparked nationwide headlines and the use of bloodhounds in the search for her. It wasn't until just a day before she was found that her family added that they were worried about the child's "suicidal thoughts."To be quite honest, if she was running off with her boyfriend it's probably safe to say that the average run-of-the-mill restrictions on dating drove her to acting out in that way. Her "suicidal thoughts" were probably nothing more than teen angst. It's not often that a "suicidal" runaway leaves with her boyfriend to seek shelter elsewhere away from her family. As stated in previous reports, the 14-year-old young woman is a home school child who lives a sheltered life on her family's California ranch. Her family has even reported through the media that she's not even familiar with the region surrounding her compound-like home. It's not hard to understand why she ran away with her boyfriend.

What's sad is that now this child is in a psychiatric clinic. While her boyfriend was hauled to jail and she was placed back safely in the care of her parents, they whisked her immediately away to facility. Is this girl really troubled, or is it simply her environment that's troubling her and she is acting out like a normal teenager. From the looks of reports about her, the latter is the best bet. Hopefully, the next four years go by quickly for this young girl so she can find herself.

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