A teenage girl who was missing from Monterey Park for a week has been found safe, an attorney for her father confirmed Tuesday.
According to Monterey Park police, Allison Chao, 15, was found with the assistance of Glendale police.
Her father, Jeffrey Chao, spoke at a news conference Tuesday to thank friends and community members who helped search for his daughter.
The father’s lawyer, Jose Romero, said there was no suspicion of foul play or kidnapping.
“We were really worried about where she was,” her father said. “We’re so grateful for all you’ve done and helped.”
The girl was found outside a news studio in Glendale, Romero said, and she is currently in the custody of the Monterey Park Police Department.
“She’s a very intelligent person, a godly person with a really kind heart,” her father said.
Hannah Bui, the father’s family law attorney, said Allison’s mother has sole legal custody of her for mental health reasons.
Bui said An Chao was granted interim custody starting last week.
Several of Allison’s friends also attended the press conference to speak about their friend and show their support.
“All my sister and I can tell her is I know everything, my dad knows everything and we’re going to do our best to help Allison,” one friend said.
“The Monterey Park Police Department would like to thank the community members and our many local, state and federal partners who assisted in this investigation,” the department said in a statement Tuesday.
According to the girl’s mother, she was last seen around 6:30 p.m. on July 16th in the El Sereno area, riding her bicycle to her aunt’s house in San Gabriel.
Monterey Park police began searching for her around 9:30 a.m. after she failed to show up at her aunt’s home.
Romero said Allison set off on her bike.
Chao’s family and local volunteers have been distributing flyers around the area in an effort to find her.
Last weekend, volunteers helped with a coordinated search effort, going door-to-door in the neighborhood where she was last seen riding her bike.
Another search party was scheduled to meet Monday evening at Fresco Market in Harmon, near where Allison was last seen. Many volunteers who don’t know the family were helping with the search.
“She’s a 15-year-old girl, so we just want to help,” said Guy Hashimoto, a volunteer with the search team. “It’s heartbreaking, just like everybody else. We just want to help, hand out flyers, help with the search, anything we can. We want to help in any way we can.”