Texas police arrest suspect in abduction of 12-year-old girl who was found safe after 8 days

COLUMBUS, Texas– Police in Texas have arrested a man suspected in the disappearance of a girl who went missing for eight days before being safely located.

The 27-year-old Houston man was charged with eluding authorities after he tried to flee from officers on Friday, Columbus police said in a social media post on Saturday.

Police learned around 12:40 a.m. Friday that a 12-year-old girl who was the subject of an AMBER alert search was in Columbus, about 90 miles west of Houston.

The girl’s identity was confirmed and she was transported to Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston for evaluation, police said.

Houston police have issued an alert to let the public know about the missing girl after she was last seen getting into a pickup truck in the city on Feb. 22, according to news reports.

The suspect was being held in the Colorado County Jail with possible additional charges pending an FBI investigation, Columbus police said.

The arrest comes on the heels of another kidnapping case involving a girl in the Houston area.

A memorial service was held Saturday for 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham, who was allegedly killed by a family friend with a history of violence.

Don McDougal was charged with murder in connection with Cunningham’s death. Prosecutors say he was supposed to take her to a school bus stop when she disappeared on Feb. 15. Her body was found in a river near Houston on February 20.