AMBER Alert For Missing Teen Misdirected

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says an Amber alert issued this week suggesting a missing Texas teenager could be in the Kansas City area was a mistake caused by miscalculating the location of her cellphone ping.

The alert was sent around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday after Texas authorities said a ping of 15-year-old Nomei “Mimi” Velazquez’s cellphone indicated she may be in the Lenexa and Overland Park areas.

But KBI special agent Mark Malick says it appears the ping was read wrong, and that there is no evidence the girl’s phone was ever in the area.

Velazquez was found safe in Lubbock, Texas on Wednesday. A 28-year-old construction worker has been taken into custody. There was no word on if he had been charged Wednesday.

___

Associated Press information from: WIBW