Brevard Sheriff says missing girl found safe in Pasco County

PORT SAINT JOHN, Fla. - A 13-year-old-girl who had been reported missing Monday afternoon in Port Saint John has been found safe in Pasco County.

In a post on the Brevard County Sheriff's Office Facebook page early Tuesday, Sheriff Wayne Ivey says that the girl had run away on Monday and was found hiding at a residence in Pasco.

Sheriff Ivey was critical of social media posts that indicated the child had been abducted.

"In spite of what some on social media with no actual knowledge of the real story, insisted was a 'child abduction' our agents knew within a very short period of time after initiating the investigation, that this was a 'runaway juvenile' scenario and not a child abduction!!" Sheriff Ivey wrote.

The case began Monday afternoon with a 911 call reporting a 13-year-old female missing near Port St. John.

Her parents were visiting a relative in that area and the child was last seen at that relative's home.

Deputies who responded quickly determined that she had left of her own free will with the assistance of another child, according to Sheriff Ivey.