Serenity Ann McKinney, 4, has not been seen since Christmas Eve, 2020, police said.
The Kentucky mother of a missing 4-year-old girl has been arrested in Kansas, along with her boyfriend, after family members said the child hasn't been seen since Christmas Eve of 2020, authorities said.
Serenity Ann McKinney was reported missing last week by her grandparents, who told law enforcement officers they last spoke with Serenity on the phone in June of last year, but hadn't seen her in 14 months.
"They contacted law enforcement in Shelby County with concerns that Serenity is in danger," Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said in a statement.
Catherine McKinney, 21, and boyfriend Dakota Hill, 26, were arrested Sunday in Kansas and have been charged with one count each of custodial interference and are awaiting extradition to Kentucky, according to officials. A warrant was issued for both adults by the Shelby County Sheriff's office in Kentucky.
The child was not with them, authorities said.
Shelby County deputies have been working with the Attorney General’s Special Victims Unit, neighboring county sheriff's departments, the state police and the U.S. Secret Service.
The child's mother had refused to cooperate with law enforcement investigators who contacted her after her child was reported missing last week, authorities said. Family members said she had stopped communicating with them in recent months.
Authorities are searching for the child, who has blonde hair, blue eyes and may have a birthmark on her stomach. Her last known location is believed to be in the Kentucky counties of Shelby, Jefferson or Bullitt.
Anyone with information about Serenity is asked to call the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office at 502-633-4324 or 502-633-2323. A Facebook page has also been established to help find the child.
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