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New York: A 6-year-old girl has been found alive and in good health in a makeshift room underneath a staircase in a house in New York state, two years after she disappeared out of sight, in a shocking incident.
The police have suspected that she was abducted by her biological non-custodial parents.
The minor girl has been identified as Paislee Shultis and she was found by officers on 14 February inside a house in the town of Saugerties. In a statement dated 15 February, the Saugerties Police Department said that the girl went missing from Spencer, New York.
The police were of the view that her biological parents, Kimberly Cooper, 33, and Kirk Shultis Jr., 32, abducted her. The police also added that the couple did not have custody of the girl.
The police received a tip-off about the whereabouts of the girl on 14 February after which, they obtained a search warrant. Subsequently, the police approached the house of the girl's grandfather where they conducted their search operation for about an hour before locating the child hidden in a makeshift room, under a closed staircase leading to the basement.
Furthermore, the police have said that the girl along with her mother was found hiding in the dark and wet enclosure upon removing the step boards.
The police told the Daily Freeman, the community's local newspaper, that the girl was taken to police headquarters where she was examined by paramedics. Her health condition was found to be good after which she was released to her local guardian.
The parents and the grandfather of the girl were arrested by the police and they are facing charges of custodial interference and endangering the welfare of a child.
According to the police, Kirk Shultis Jr. was interviewed by the police several times since the girl went missing. He maintained that he had no knowledge of her location and told officers that he had not seen the child.
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