UPDATE: Girls found safe. Full story here.
Five young girls aged 11 to 13 went missing after school on Monday and police believe they may have run away together. Now authorities are asking the public to help them find the girls and get them home safe. It's believed they haven't left the state.
"They are young girls and of course that causes great concern that they haven't been home in 24 hours," said Minneapolis police spokesperson Cyndi Barrington. Investigators have spoken to the girls' parents, she added. Police searched for the girls all day Tuesday without luck, prompting the public appeal, she said.
The missing include Isabel Marie Ward, 13, Gabriella Rae Woods, 12, Keneni Mekonen Legese, 11, Malina Gail-Corrine Long Crow, 12, and Alexandra Rubina O'Brien, 12. Social media users said the girls were last seen at Seward Montessori school at 2:30 p.m. Monday. Another person tweeted that a neighborhood canvassing effort will get underway at 5:30 p.m. this evening.
Anyone with information on the girls' whereabouts should call 911. Photos of all five girls were distributed by Minneapolis police Tuesday evening.
