MONROE COUNTY, Fla. — A 13-year-old missing girl was found safe in the Florida Keys after authorities caught her with her alleged kidnapper, according to reports.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, 35-year-old Tyler Michael Berlick from Wisconsin was arrested for kidnapping the 13-year-old from South Carolina. The agency says they received information Berlick was possibly on his way to Monroe County.
Authorities were able to locate him and the teen in a Dodge Ram pickup truck at the Pink Plaza shopping center at approximately 3:24 a.m. on Tuesday.
According to a report from the Miami Herald, it's not clear how the two met, but the sheriff's office investigation revealed they had known each other for a little more than a year. This means the girl was about 11 or 12 years old at the time.
The news outlet says deputies entered Berlick’s name in the national criminal database and saw he has an out-of-state warrant.
When Berlick was being held to the side of the road, the girl reportedly became agitated and showed signs of wanting to harm herself. The sheriff's office says they then notified the Florida Department of Children and Family Services.
The Miami Herald reports she is in protective custody receiving mental health services until she can be returned to South Carolina, per a statement from Sheriff Rick Ramsay.
“This is probably something that will affect her the rest of her life,” Ramsay said to the outlet.
Ramsay went on to tell the reporter while the girl had been reported missing from South Carolina, he did not immediately know when, who reported her missing or what area of that state she was from.
The Monroe County Sheriff's Office says the FBI is now the primary agency investigating this case.
