Beaver Dam Amber Alert; Nebraska arrest ends weeks of searches
The Brief
An Amber Alert for a pregnant teen from Beaver Dam has been canceled.
Police said she was found safe in Nebraska after a tip from a stranger.
Searches and investigations spanned multiple states. A man is in custody.
MILWAUKEE - A pregnant teen from Beaver Dam will return home safe after weeks of searches and investigations, which spanned multiple states, thanks to a tip from a stranger nearly 500 miles from home.
The backstory
An Amber Alert was issued in Wisconsin after Sophia Franklin was last seen at her home on Feb. 2. At the time, she was 16 years old and three months pregnant. Amber Alerts were later issued in Arkansas and Missouri.
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The teen was found on Wednesday – her 17th birthday – near Omaha, Nebraska. She was with 40-year-old Gary Day, who is now in custody. Police said he is the father of the unborn child, and the two began talking online roughly a year ago.
What they're saying
Nearly 500 miles from Beaver Dam, the "see something, say something" mantra ended the search for the missing teen.
"They observed an adult male and juvenile female, and they just thought it was suspicious – that maybe they just didn't go together," said Lt. Dennis Svoboda with the Sarpy County Sheriff's Office.
After talking with the teen, a 911 caller went online and saw an Amber Alert for her, along with a photo of the man investigators said she was with.
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"They provided false information, some variety of names. Our people ran them through databases, couldn't find them," Svoboda said.
That is, Svoboda said, until a mobile fingerprint scanner confirmed Day's identity, and he was taken into custody.
Dig deeper
Police said Day was seen on surveillance near Franklin's home in February. His booking photo looks a lot different from the photos shared in police social media posts and prior Amber Alerts.
"He definitely was trying to elude investigation and subsequent arrest, which makes him even more problematic," said Stan Stojkovic, professor emeritus of criminology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Day also changed license plates on the car he was driving, and Svoboda said the two may have hitchhiked around the country. That's partially why Stojkovic gave kudos to all involved law enforcement agencies.
"This is a victory for law enforcement," he said.
What's next
Day remains in custody in the Sarpa County Jail, where he faces misdemeanor charges. He has outstanding child abuse charges in Arkansas against a different child, on top of felony charges in Wisconsin tied to Franklin.
FOX6 News asked the Dodge County District Attorney's Office about extradition for Day but did not hear back by the deadline for this story.
The Source
FOX6 News interviews Lt. Dennis Svoboda with the Sarpy County Sheriff's Office and Stan Stojkovic, professor emeritus of criminology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Information from prior coverage of the case was also referenced.
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