Teen goes missing after telling friend she was being followed as surveillance footage shows her walking alone
Investigators found the backpack and cellphone belonging to Saige Stiles but no sign of the missing girl
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Your support makes all the difference.A teenage girl has gone missing on her way to school in Florida after telling a friend she was being followed, with surveillance footage capturing her walking alone through the area as a search got underway.
Saige Stiles, 15, was last seen walking to Treasure Coast High School in Port St. Lucie at around 6.55am on Monday morning.
The teenager was speaking to a friend on the phone and said she was being followed.
Concerned for her safety, the friend called 911 and gave police Saige’s last known location.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found the 15-year-old’s backpack and cellphone, but no sign of the missing girl.
Port St. Lucie Police Sergeant John Dellacroce said at a press conference that the teenager had been spotted on surveillance footage around 30 minutes after she was reported missing.
The video shows Saige walking behind houses in the Panther Trace Community at 7.30am.
Sgt Dellacroce said that she did not appear to be in any immediate danger or distress in the footage.
“She just was walking. Didn’t appear she was in danger or distress. Just walking through the backyard,” he said.
Sgt Dellacroce said that police do not have any details or a description about the individual Saige said was following her.
It is also unclear if the morning’s phone call was the first time she had raised concerns about being followed.
“Her saying she was being followed” triggered an “extensive manhunt”, said Sgt Dellacroce, but he added that all investigative leads are currently being explored.
Investigators have spoken to the missing girl’s father and her friend “to find out if anything is going on at the house” or if she has a history of running away from home.
The police sergeant made a direct appeal to the missing teen to get in contact with authorities if she can.
“We urge Saige if you’re out there, if you’re safe, please call us. You’re not in any type of trouble,” he said.
For now, the search for the missing teen remains “fluid” and the teenager is regarded as “missing and endangered”.
“It’s all hands on deck until we can find her,” said Sgt Dellacroce.
Saige is described as 5’5” tall and 120lbs with brown hair. She was last seen wearing jeans and a long sleeve gray shirt.
Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to immediately call 911.
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