Amber Alert: Stepdad of missing Houston 4-year-old says he was 'knocked unconscious' by three men who abducted her
Police learned from the stepfather of a missing four-year-old girl that he was knocked unconscious by three Hispanic males before they kidnapped her.
Maleah Davis, 4, was taken by the three men while traveling with her stepfather, Darion Vence, and his two-year-old son, leading to an Amber Alert issued in Texas on Sunday, Daily Mail reports.
According to police, the family was on its way to the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston to pick up Maleah's mother on Friday night. However, they never made it to the airport, where the mother was arriving from Massachusetts.
The 26-year-old told police he heard a "popping noise" in his car around 9 pm, prompting him to pull over and check his tire. When he got out of the vehicle, a blue Chevrolet Crew Cab pick-up truck pulled up behind him and two Hispanic males approached them, police said. The attackers appeared to be in their 30s.
Sgt Mark Holbrook of the Houston Police Department's Homicide Division revealed during a press conference that one of the men commented "Maleah looks very nice, looks very sweet," before the second individual knocked Vence over the head and kidnapped his daughter.
Speaking to detectives, Vence said he was in and out of consciousness after the incident. But he remembers waking up in the back of the blue pickup truck at some point with his children as the men drove ahead.
Vence reportedly remained unconscious for almost 24 hours before he woke up around 6 pm on Saturday on Highway 6.
After regaining consciousness, he realized Maleah was nowhere to be seen, police said. He then walked to the Houston Methodist and received treatment before reporting his daughter missing.
Authorities said they were able to capture the license plate of the vehicle being driven by Vence. Also, photos displayed at the press conference showed the stolen car — a silver 2011 Nissan Altima.
According to cops, the vehicle was last captured by a traffic camera at around 3 pm on Saturday near Highway 59 & State Highway 6 in Sugar Land, Houston.
"I realize there's a lot of blanks in the story, but we are hoping the public can help fill in the blanks," Sgt Holbrook said Sunday.
Holbrook said Maleah had had multiple brain surgeries and that her most recent surgery was in late March.
She was reportedly recovering from an injury and "needed a lot of care," Holbrook said, adding, "This week she was sick too."
Police are still trying to determine the motive behind the abduction.
Maleah was last seen wearing a light blue zip jacket, gray/white/pink sneakers, and a pink bow in her hair. Police have described her as an African American female with black hair and brown eyes, standing 3 feet tall and weighing 30 to 40 pounds.
Anyone with pertinent information on Maleah's whereabouts is requested to contact HPD Homicide at 713-308-3600 or at 713-222-TIPS