How a Netflix show helped to find a missing girl who vanished six years ago

An employee at a second-hand clothing store almost 900 kilometres away from where the child went missing called police after recognising her from a popular streaming show.

A missing American girl whose abduction was featured on a popular true crime series on Netflix was found alive and safe in North Carolina after a stranger recognised her.

Kayla Unbehaun was nine years old when her non-custodial mother, Heather Unbehaun, abducted her from South Elgin in Illinois on July 5, 2017, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) said.

Neither Kayla nor Heather had been located until May 13, when an employee at Plato’s Closet in Asheville, North Carolina, recognised the pair from “well-publicised media” and alerted police, WLOS reported.

Kayla’s kidnapping was featured in an episode of Netflix’s Unsolved Mysteries last year dedicated to parental abductions.

Heather, 40, was arrested by local authorities and is being held on $225,000 bond, the outlet said.

She is awaiting extradition to Illinois, where the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office is prepared to charge her with at least one count of child abduction.

Kayla, now 15, is in the custody of the North Carolina Department of Social Services.

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The mother of Kayla Unbehaun, 40-year-old Heather Unbehaun, has been taken into custody in North Carolina. Photo: Asheville Police Department

"I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe"

In July 2017, Heather only had visitation rights with Kayla, who primarily resided with her father, Ryan Iskerka.

He went to an address in Wheaton, Illinois, only to learn that Heather had packed her bags and left with Kayla the day before, NBC Chicago reports.

“I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe. I want to thank the South Elgin Police Department, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and all of the law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case,” Iskerka said in an emotional statement shared through NCMEC.

“I also want to thank all of the followers on the ‘Bring Kayla Home’ Facebook page, who helped keep her story alive and were instrumental in spreading awareness. We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning.”

During the time Kayla was missing, NEMEC released an age-progression photo of her.

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Kayla Unbehaun is shown here, left, around the time of her disappearance in 2017. On the right is an age-progressed photo of her to 14 years. Photos: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children

Dad's heartbreaking tribute on Kayla's 15th birthday

In a Facebook page titled “Bring Kayla Home”, Ryan wrote a tribute to his daughter earlier this year on her 15th birthday, on January 5.

“I love you and miss you so much. I can’t wait for the day that I get to see you again, hoping each day I wake up will be the day. It could never come soon enough. I think of you every day hoping and praying that you are safe, happy and that you will come back into my life soon,” the post read. “There are so many others who love you and miss you as well.”

“You are a young woman now with your own thoughts and opinions. I hope you are old enough to realise you only know half of the story from one point of view,” it continued. “I hope you could remember [the] truth about how things were when we were all able to be together, how good things really were.”

“The truth is I’m still alive and love you with every beat of my heart. I love you so much that there can be no bounds to measure it by. I have loved you since before you were even alive when you were just a possibility,” the post concluded. “I’ve dreamt about being your Dada since I was a little boy. And I’ve loved you through all of this, no matter what will happen and will continue to love you forever. I’ve never wanted anything but the best for you which I feel part of that is being in each other’s lives.”

- New York Post, Fox News

Originally published as How a Netflix show helped to find a missing girl who vanished six years ago