A desperate hunt for a missing girl is underway after police found her younger sister starving and locked in a wardrobe.
Ava Marie Gonzales was last seen by extended family and friends in December 2017 when she was just two.
More than six years later, on 3 April this year, officers discovered her seven-year-old sister “malnourished, soiled and barricaded in a bedroom closet”, according to ABC News, citing an arrest warrant affidavit.
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On Tuesday (6 May), police put out a news release appealing for the public’s help in locating the missing girl.
Their mum, Virginia Gonzales, was arrested on 24 April.
She was later charged with injury to a child and serious bodily injury related to the seven-year-old.
According to police, six other children were found in the family home and appeared physically healthy, as reported by Need To Know.
“The Austin Police Department is asking the community for help to find Ava Marie Gonzales, a missing nine-year-old girl,” Russell Constable, an APD detective, told a press conference.
“On 3 April Austin Police Department responded to a 911 call for a seven-year-old child that was found locked in a closet and starving.
“[The child] was immediately taken to a local hospital for medical treatment and is currently recovering.
“Austin Police Department’s missing person detectives are seriously concerned about Ava’s welfare, given the circumstances in which Ava’s seven-year-old sibling was found.”
According to Russell, the seven-year-old was discovered by her grandmother while she was visiting Gonzales’ home.
The grandmother immediately called the police to report that she had found the child.
It is believed that the girl was inside the closet for a month and was fed a hot dog or a corn dog each morning.
She was given just half a cup of water each day.
According to the affidavit, the girl weighed 29 pounds when she was taken to hospital.
Police have not identified Ava’s father, but are working to do so.
The Travis County Sheriff’s Office online inmate records stated that Gonzales is being held on a £56,484 bond, according to PEOPLE.
In the hopes of finding Ava, police have released an age-progressed photo of what she could look like today.
Ava is a Hispanic female with straight brown hair and brown eyes.
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