ALBEMARLE — A girl reported missing from a nearby county was located safely, according to the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office.
An Amber Alert was issued Thursday night for 16-year-old Stephanie Morton, who was reportedly last seen around 7:30 a.m. at South Stanly High School getting into a red car with a middle-aged man.
That man was identified in the alert as 30-year-old 30-year-old Duane Howard Bartlett.
A post on the sheriff’s office Facebook page noted that the suspect was in custody, however the named suspect did not appear in Stanly County Jail records late Friday morning.
At least one news outlet reported that the girl was found in another state. However, there was no indication of that in the social media post.
“This investigation spanned numerous agencies, states, dozens of law enforcement officers and telecommunicators,” read the update from the sheriff’s office. “Thank everyone for their help.”