Missing nine-year-old Charlotte Sena was kidnapped in a scant 15-minute window on Saturday evening after she ventured out on a bike ride alone during a two-day camping trip with her family.
Charlotte was traveling alone on Loop A of Moreau Lake State Park in New York, near Saratoga Springs, when she disappeared at 6:15 p.m. She had been playing with friends all day, but decided to ride her bike alone one last time before the sun went down.
It should have only taken a few minutes to complete the small loop. At 6:30 p.m., her parents discovered that she had not returned and became worried. At 6:47 p.m., they found Charlotte’s bike on the loop and called 911.
A frantic search is underway for the child, for whom an Amber Alert was issued on Sunday morning after rangers searched the 6,250-acre park and found no trace of her.
There are 158 campsites in the park, but it is unclear how many were in use Saturday. Loop A is located in the southwest corner of the park and is directly adjacent to US Highway 9, which runs from Philadelphia to Canada.
The FBI is now assisting in the search, but law enforcement officials did not provide an update Monday as they pressed for new information.
“At this time, our efforts remain focused on the search for Charlotte.”
“We are investigating all possibilities that may have led to Charlotte’s disappearance,” Trooper Stephanie L. O’Neil of the New York State Police told .
Charlotte Sena was last seen cycling around Loop A in Moreau Lake State Park in upstate New York near Saratoga Springs. At 6:15 p.m. she rode her bike alone and was never seen again. The police couldn’t find her anywhere in the park and therefore assume she was kidnapped
Nine-year-old Charlotte Sena has been missing since Saturday night, when police said she was abducted from the campsite where she was staying with her family
This is Loop A, where Charlotte was cycling Monday evening when she disappeared. It is located next to Old Saratoga Road. Police pinpointed the location where she disappeared to Campsite 18, but it is unclear if that is where her bike was found or where she was staying
This is Loop A in Moreau Lake State Park. It is surrounded by forests and there are 31 campsites in close proximity to each other
Loop A is surrounded by a dense forest. Old Saratoga Road runs alongside it, which later flows into US Highway 9
While campers must reserve a spot and provide their contact information, the park is easily accessible during the day for anyone not camping. There are no official records of who was visiting on Saturday other than the campers.
Police are also refusing to disclose how many people were in the park at the time and whether they interviewed everyone who was asked to leave the park on Sunday after the Amber Alert was issued.
Amber and her family were part of a larger group of family and friends.
“Someone must have seen something just in the park.” It was crowded, it was dinner time, a busy campsite, a 25 degree weekend day.
“I can’t believe someone didn’t notice something,” Charlotte’s aunt Jené Sena said during an interview on the YouTube true crime podcast DutyRon.
She has since set up a GoFundMe account to help the family.
New York State Police are confident that Charlotte was abducted, but it is unclear whether there is surveillance footage from the campground that shows how she was abducted.
She was last seen wearing a tie-dye Pokémon shirt, dark blue pants, black crocs and a gray bicycle helmet.
They did not disclose how many people were in the park or how far Charlotte’s bike was found from the campground.
Site 18 on Loop A in Moreau Lake State Park near Gansevoort, New York. Charlotte was on a group trip with family and friends
Charlotte was taken out of the park while wearing this pink Pokémon t-shirt, a gray bike helmet and dark blue pants
Charlotte (far right) as a younger child with her mother Trisha, her father David and her sisters. The distraught family is desperate for her to get home
Charlotte can be seen in a recent video uploaded to social media by her aunt
Charlotte weighs 45 kg and is 1.75 m tall. Her family says she is “trusting” and a “good child”
Charlotte asked her parents if she could ride her bike alone on Saturday at 6:15 p.m
A description of the suspect or vehicle has not yet been provided.
In a TikTok video last night, Jene, Charlotte’s aunt, said: “In a TikTok she said: ‘There’s no information we can say at the moment, but if you can continue to share her photo and really pray then that’s the right thing to do.’ ‘ The best our family could ask of anyone this time.
“The police are doing their job.” If you know anything, contact the New York State Police. Any information would help.’
Charlotte’s mother, Trisha, told the Albany Times Union this weekend that she was a “confidential” child.
“I just want my daughter back,” she said.
She and her husband David have three daughters. The family lives nearby in a $200,000 three-bedroom home in Porters Corner, New York.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul was at the state park yesterday to help with the search
Park rangers were assisted by New York State Troopers in the search for the missing Charlotte
Volunteers searched the park yesterday after the Amber Alert was issued. Police say she is not there and had to be removed by a kidnapper
Trisha works for Stewart’s Shops, a grocery chain.
The family was scheduled to stay at the state park for a second night on Saturday when Charlotte disappeared. The park is now closed.
“This family is hurting. You can’t imagine what the last 36 hours have been like for her. “It’s devastating,” Patrick Kane, a family friend, told The Times Union on Monday morning.
Kane runs a remodeling business and said he has worked with Charlotte’s father, David, in the past.
The Corinth Central School District, where Charlotte attends fourth grade, issued a statement Sunday following her disappearance.
“The Sena family enjoys the full support of the entire district and community of Corinth. The district has mobilized its crisis team, which has training and protocols to follow for such situations.
“Our staff are available to address student concerns and questions.” We will also have additional supervisors on site if students or staff need support.
“The district continues to prioritize the safety and well-being of our students and staff.”
“Our thoughts are with the Sena family.”