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Amber Alert toddler slept on Maricopa street after abduction: court docs

Kehlani Rogers, 2, and Marina Noriega, 23, are shown in images released during the investigation.

The 2-year-old girl at the center of a weekend Amber Alert slept on a Maricopa street Saturday night after being abducted from her Avondale home, according to new court documents.

Marina Noriega, 23, is accused of abducting the toddler Friday night from a home near 118th Avenue and Thomas Road in Avondale. Residents told police that Noriega was a “random woman” who had been staying with the family after she was dropped off from California and had nowhere to go.

According to court paperwork, the child’s parents reported that when they woke up, Noriega and the toddler were gone. After searching the neighborhood, they contacted police, prompting an Amber Alert Saturday.

Investigators later received tips placing Noriega and the child in Maricopa. One tipster told authorities they picked up the pair at Friendship Park in Avondale and drove them to Maricopa, where Noriega allegedly said she planned to take a train to California. Officers reviewed surveillance footage and passenger information at the Maricopa Amtrak station but did not locate Noriega on any passenger lists or observe her at the station while monitoring the area.

 

Surveillance image shows Marina Noriega and the abducted toddler inside the Maricopa Bashas’ during the Amber Alert investigation. [Avondale PD]

 

The documents also state Noriega and the toddler slept outdoors in Maricopa overnight Saturday.

Authorities later tracked the pair to a QuikTrip in Phoenix on Sunday morning. Court records say a moving crew and a security guard blocked the pickup truck Noriega was driving and called police.

Responding officers confirmed the girl matched the Amber Alert description and took Noriega into custody.

Marina Noriega, 23.

According to court documents, Noriega was found with drug paraphernalia and told officers she had used drugs while the child was with her. The toddler was reunited with her family and was reported to be physically unharmed.

During a police interview, Noriega allegedly claimed the girl was her biological daughter and said the child had been abducted from a Sacramento hospital. Investigators noted inconsistencies between Noriega’s timeline and the child’s age.

Court paperwork states Noriega later admitted the girl was not her daughter and told officers she “made a mistake.”

Noriega is booked in Maricopa County jail on one count of custodial interference with a $250,000 bond.

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One Response

  1. Someone lose a truck? I’m left wondering, is a theft of means of transportation charge being added, where did she obtain the truck?

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