WASHINGTON, NC — A girl who disappeared from the Los Angeles area as a 5-year-old has been found safe in North Carolina, six years after her family reported her missing. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said Karen Rojas was located after investigators acted on information shared by agencies in California and North Carolina.
Authorities said the child, now 11, had been enrolled in the school system under an alias. She has been placed in protective custody. No arrest has been announced.
The recovery ends a long search that involved local, state, and national child-protection efforts. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children said the outcome came just months after it released an updated age progression showing what Karen might look like today.
How investigators traced Karen Rojas to a North Carolina school
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said the breakthrough came after it received information the previous day from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office and the California Department of Children and Family Services. Investigators then worked to confirm the child’s identity and determine where she had been living.
According to the sheriff’s office, Karen was discovered through her enrollment in the school system under another name. Officials did not explain in detail how the alias was first identified, but they said the coordinated tips and follow-up helped lead to the safe recovery.
The sheriff’s office described the result as rare for a case this old, saying it showed what can happen when agencies keep working together. Local authorities in Washington County thanked multiple agencies in California and North Carolina for helping bring the child to safety.
What officials say happened after the girl disappeared in 2020
Karen was reported missing on June 2, 2020, from her home in Duarte, California. Authorities have said her mother, who had custody, stopped communicating with the Department of Children and Family Services and was believed to have taken the child.
The case quickly became a long-running search centered on where Karen might have been taken and how she might have changed over time. NCMEC said it worked closely with local and state officials from the beginning of the case.
As the search continued, Karen remained one of the children featured in national missing-person outreach. Her name and image were circulated for years as investigators tried to generate leads and keep the case in the public eye.
The age-progression image released months before the recovery
Three months before Karen was found, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children released a new age-progression image to show how she might appear as an 11-year-old. The organization often uses these images in older missing-child cases to help the public recognize a child who has changed over time.
NCMEC said it worked with media partners to draw attention to the case as part of that effort. The center said the recovery reflected persistence, coordination, and a shared commitment not to give up on missing children.
John Bischoff, who oversees NCMEC’s Missing Children Division, called the recovery an incredible moment for everyone involved in trying to bring Karen home. He said the case showed the value of close cooperation between law enforcement and the organization.
No arrest announced as Karen is placed in protective custody
Officials said Karen has been taken into protective custody following the recovery. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said no one has been arrested in connection with the case.
That leaves open questions about what happens next in the investigation, including how long the child had been living in North Carolina and what authorities may learn from the circumstances surrounding her disappearance. So far, officials have not announced any criminal charges.
Even without an arrest, the case stands out because of the length of time Karen had been missing and the fact that investigators were able to locate her alive. Authorities credited cooperation between agencies in both states for helping close the search successfully.
Why the case stood out to child-protection investigators
Long-term missing-child cases often depend on small leads, public awareness, and cooperation across jurisdictions. In this case, officials said the combination of school enrollment records, agency information, and sustained attention to the case made the recovery possible.
The sheriff’s office said the positive outcome was unusual given the age of the case, but emphasized that careful work and communication can still produce results years after a child vanishes. NCMEC echoed that message by pointing to the persistence of everyone involved.
For Karen’s case, the recovery is being treated as a rare success story after years of uncertainty. Authorities have not said whether additional public updates are expected, but they confirmed the child is safe and in protective custody.
