SMYRNA, Ga. (AP) Police say a 14-year-old girl who went missing from a Maine foster home has been found safe in Georgia, and the man who took the teenager there has killed himself.
Police had been searching for Heavenlee Benjamin for more than a week before finding her Tuesday. She went missing from the Readfield, Maine, foster home late last month.
Police say Benjamin met 35-year-old Robert Gooden online and she appears to have left the foster home on her own. Maine State Police say Gooden took a bus to Maine in late February, met up with Banjamin and the two returned to Georgia on a bus.
She was found Tuesday morning in a home in Smyrna, outside of Atlanta. Police say an arrest warrant was issued for Gooden yesterday, charging him with kidnapping. Police say he took his life as they entered the home.
Police say they’re continuing to investigate whether other people were involved.
