Posted on 08/02/2002 6:56:52 PM PDT by crypt2k
Young Chinese Girl Missing After Landing at SFO Source: kcbs Publication date: 2002-08-02
(KCBS) - A countywide search is underway for a missing 12-year-old Chinese girl, who was last seen at San Francisco International Airport Thursday afternoon. KCBS reporter Bob Melrose said 12-year old Yukun Jia of Beijing has not been seen since 2pm Thursday, when she and the group she was with cleared customs at San Francisco International Airport.
The tour group did not report her missing until sometime after 5pm, when they realized she was not with them during a tour of Stanford University. Police say that three hour time frame really set back the investigation.
Sergeant Larry Ratti with the SFPD Airport Bureau said San Mateo police are also involved in the search for Jia, who arrived at SFO with two dozen other young people and adults as part of a youth group tour.
"A group of approximately 27 youth were on their way to a bus at curbside. It is not clear whether or not she boarded the bus," at SFO, said Ratti. "No one can say if they saw her on the bus or not. They got their first stop at Stanford University. When they did a recount getting back on the bus at Stanford, they realized she wasn't there."
"The last time they can confirm they saw her was about 2:10 yesterday afternoon, right outside of customs," he said. "We've put out a county-wide search and searched the airport several times. Right now, we're asking for the public's help to see if they can locate this girl."
Ratti said police searched all over the airport and up and down the Peninsula.
"We set up quadrant searches. We searched this airport approximately five times, all the way from 5pm to 1am," said Ratti. They searched, "even areas she couldn’t get to, past the checkpoints, AOA areas, cargo areas, the roadways from Brisbane all the way to Burlingame We put out a county wide alert to all the local law enforcement agencies up and down the Peninsula, and also the law enforcement agencies around Stanford University. We've had everybody looking for her that we possibly could."
Jia is 5'7" and weighs 110 pounds. She has black hair and brown eyes. She speaks Mandarin Chinese and very little English.
She was last seen wearing a yellow T-shirt with Chinese characters on the front and the words "space camp'' on the back. She was also wearing white pants with a blue stripe running down each leg.
Ratti said the Amber alert system wasn't activated because this isn't a confirmed abduction.
Possible defection has not been ruled out, but there is no indication that she might have done that.
"In talking to the adults on the tour, they acknowledged that it could be a possibility, but we have no information at this time that she's defected," said Ratti.
Jia has no known relatives in the Bay Area, no history of running away and no known medical conditions.
Police have contacted the FBI, State Department and Chinese officials in San Francisco.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the police.
(updated, 6pm, gcb, ph)
e0222 a0-rb06000 f n FLASH-satcom-MISSING_CHI 08/02 71 MISSING CHILD ALERT
From: Office of Emergency Services
REBROADCAST OF CHP MESSAGE, DATED 08/02/02 1318 HOURS. MISSING CHILD LAST SEEN AT SAN FRANCISCO AIRPORT ON 08/01/02 AT 1355 HOURS. YUKUN JIA, ASIAN FEMALE CHILD, DOB 112589, 5'7, 110 lbs, SHORT BLK HAIR, BRN EYES, LIGHT SKIN. CLOTHING; YEL T-SHIRT WITH WORDS 'SPACE CAMP', WHT PANTS WITH BLU STRIPE NNN
For more information contact: /DISPATCH (650) 363-4915 SAN MATEO SO
EDIS-08-02-02 1345 PDT
A little young to be defecting, no?
The fed's searched the house twice earlier that day for weapons and found none.
If Reno (and klintoon) had left him alone this child and his dad might have been playing in Miami today.
My first thought exactly. A 12-year-old, who doesn't speak English, and has no known family in the area, and, I would assume, no money, suddenly runs off to...where? I'm afraid that message the police received is probably someone's sick hoax.
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