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Netflix’s ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ may have helped find Kayla Unbehaun who was abducted by her mom 6 years ago

An employee at Plato’s Closet in Asheville, North Carolina, recognized the mother-daughter duo from 'well-publicized media' and alerted police

ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA: In a miraculous turn of events, Kayla Unbehaun, a South Elgin girl who went missing nearly six years ago was found safe after her case was featured in shows like Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries'. Unbehaun, who turned 15 in January, was just 9 years old when her non-custodial mother Heather Unbehaun abducted her in July 2017, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) said.

For years, authorities searched for Kayla and Heather but found no solid leads. Eventually, the abduction became a cold case. However, in a major breakthrough on May 13, an employee at Plato’s Closet in Asheville, North Carolina, recognized the mother-daughter duo from “well-publicized media” and alerted police, according to NY Post. Police immediately tracked down Kayla and took her into protective custody. Heather was also arrested in North Carolina and was charged with one count of child abduction.

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'A watcher of Unsolved Mysteries has solved the case!'

Although the witness did not specify the 'published media' that helped them recognize Heather, Netflix did tweet on Tuesday, May 16, clarifying that "A watcher of Unsolved Mysteries has solved the case!”

"A store owner in North Carolina recognized Kayla Unbehaun — who was abducted in 2017 by her non-custodial mother — from the roll call in Volume 3, Episode 9. Kayla, now 15, is expected to return to her family in Illinois,” the tweet read further. In the past, Kayla’s case was kept alive by several true crime TV series, according to Unilad.

Kayla's disappearance was first explored in the Peacock show 'Vanished: The Missing Persons Project' in 2020. It was then covered again on Netflix's blockbuster docuseries 'Unsolved Mysteries' last year. Recently, NCMEC also released Kayla’s age-progressed pictures in a bid to help her father Ryan in finding his daughter. Ryan was the one who filed Kayla and Heather’s missing report in 2017 when they planned to go on a camping trip. Kayla was supposed to return to Ryan on July 5 but when he drove to Heather's grandfather's house, he found the mother-daughter duo were nowhere to be seen.

'I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe'

After asking around, he discovered that Heather had left the area with Kayla. He then rushed to the police station to file the pair’s missing report. On July 29, 2017, authorities issued a felony arrest warrant for Heather. Both Kayla and Heather had been missing until the recent developments in 2023.

After finding his daughter alive, Ryan released a statement reading "I’m overjoyed that Kayla is home safe. I want to thank [Elgin, Illinois Police Department and Fire Department], the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and all law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case. We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning."