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| France: fears nine-year-old girl was kidnapped from wedding reception | France: fears nine-year-old girl was kidnapped from wedding reception |
| (5 months later) | |
| Maëlys de Araujo not seen since about 3am on Sunday when she was at party with parents in town of Pont-de-Beauvoisin in the Alps | |
| Agence France-Presse | |
| Wed 30 Aug 2017 02.09 BST | |
| Last modified on Mon 27 Nov 2017 17.48 GMT | |
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| Divers, police dogs and a helicopter have taken part in a massive search for a missing nine-year-old girl in the French Alps after she vanished during a family wedding at the weekend. | Divers, police dogs and a helicopter have taken part in a massive search for a missing nine-year-old girl in the French Alps after she vanished during a family wedding at the weekend. |
| “Obviously we are exploring all leads,” the local prosecutor, Dietlind Baudoin, told a news conference more than 48 hours after the disappearance of the girl, Maëlys de Araujo. | “Obviously we are exploring all leads,” the local prosecutor, Dietlind Baudoin, told a news conference more than 48 hours after the disappearance of the girl, Maëlys de Araujo. |
| The girl has not been seen since about 3am local time on Sunday when she was at the wedding with her parents and other family members in the town of Pont-de-Beauvoisin in the French Alps near the town of Chambéry. | The girl has not been seen since about 3am local time on Sunday when she was at the wedding with her parents and other family members in the town of Pont-de-Beauvoisin in the French Alps near the town of Chambéry. |
| The party ended with guests searching for Maëlys after the DJ announced that she had disappeared, local reports said. | The party ended with guests searching for Maëlys after the DJ announced that she had disappeared, local reports said. |
| The regional police chief, Yves Marzin, said three sniffer dogs had all lost the scent from Maëlys’s cuddly toy at “the same spot” in the car park outside the venue. | The regional police chief, Yves Marzin, said three sniffer dogs had all lost the scent from Maëlys’s cuddly toy at “the same spot” in the car park outside the venue. |
| “One of the possible theories is that little Maëlys left in a car, one way or another,” Marzin said. | “One of the possible theories is that little Maëlys left in a car, one way or another,” Marzin said. |
| A source close to the investigation said “each passing hour” made kidnapping more likely than the possibility that Maëlys was involved in an accident or ran away. | A source close to the investigation said “each passing hour” made kidnapping more likely than the possibility that Maëlys was involved in an accident or ran away. |
| Posters of the brown-haired girl with brown eyes have gone up throughout the town and surrounding area, and an investigation has been opened into a possible kidnapping. | Posters of the brown-haired girl with brown eyes have gone up throughout the town and surrounding area, and an investigation has been opened into a possible kidnapping. |
| Around 100 police, including divers, cavers and dog handlers, have joined in the search. Divers could be seen searching for her in the nearby Guiers river on Tuesday. | Around 100 police, including divers, cavers and dog handlers, have joined in the search. Divers could be seen searching for her in the nearby Guiers river on Tuesday. |
| The surrounding area is heavily wooded with “very dense vegetation”, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. | The surrounding area is heavily wooded with “very dense vegetation”, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. |
| “Given the time that has elapsed since the disappearance of the young Maëlys and given the resources that have been sadly deployed in vain to find her, the criminal possibility can no longer be ruled out,” Baudoin said at the courthouse in nearby Bourgoin-Jallieu. | “Given the time that has elapsed since the disappearance of the young Maëlys and given the resources that have been sadly deployed in vain to find her, the criminal possibility can no longer be ruled out,” Baudoin said at the courthouse in nearby Bourgoin-Jallieu. |
| But she warned against “making hasty conclusions”. | But she warned against “making hasty conclusions”. |
| Wedding guests searched for the girl for about an hour before alerting the police, Baudoin said. | Wedding guests searched for the girl for about an hour before alerting the police, Baudoin said. |
| Police are questioning the 180 people who attended the wedding as well as people at two other parties held in the town on Saturday night. | Police are questioning the 180 people who attended the wedding as well as people at two other parties held in the town on Saturday night. |
| So far, 140 people out of a total of 250 have been questioned, according to Didier Plunian, who heads the region’s search and rescue unit. | So far, 140 people out of a total of 250 have been questioned, according to Didier Plunian, who heads the region’s search and rescue unit. |
| The other parties took place in a parish hall and a bar, both near the wedding venue, Baudoin said. | The other parties took place in a parish hall and a bar, both near the wedding venue, Baudoin said. |
| The child’s mother and other relatives were receiving psychological counselling, the RTL broadcaster reported. | The child’s mother and other relatives were receiving psychological counselling, the RTL broadcaster reported. |
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