A 23-year-old woman, Marina Noriega, has been indicted after allegedly abducting a 3-year-old girl named Kehlani Rogers from Arizona. The Maricopa County Attorney, Rachel Mitchell, announced the indictment on charges of custodial interference and second-degree burglary in connection to the kidnapping. Noriega is currently held on a $250,000 cash bond.
The Avondale Police Department reported Rogers missing on February 20, with the last sighting being on the same day around 11:30 p.m. The young girl was described as 3’5” tall, with a thin build, brown braided hair, brown eyes, and was last seen in pink pajamas. Police stated that she was believed to be with a woman known only as ‘Merena,’ described as a 30-year-old White female with a short stature, thin build, brown hair in a ponytail, hazel eyes, and wearing a white top and purple or pink pants.
Fortunately, two days after she went missing, Rogers was found safe on February 22. Court documents revealed that Rogers’ parents had allowed a “random woman” into their home who needed a place to stay. They woke up on February 21 to find both the woman and their child missing.
A tip led investigators to identify Noriega as a suspect, and surveillance footage from a local business in Maricopa confirmed her presence with the young girl. Noriega and Rogers were located at a gas station in Phoenix on the morning of February 22. Noriega initially claimed that Rogers was her daughter, born in Sacramento and abducted from a hospital. However, she later admitted that Rogers was not her child and acknowledged her mistake.
Noriega is scheduled to be arraigned on March 11, with her trial tentatively set to begin on July 8. It remains unclear if she has entered a plea or obtained legal representation. The motive behind the alleged kidnapping has not been disclosed by the police.
