The Amber Alert issued for a Rochester, NY, teen believed to be headed to New York City was canceled after she was found safe in Brooklyn, officials said Tuesday.
Joanna Coates, 14, was found safely in Brooklyn late Tuesday morning, NYPD’s Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea said.
“The young girl is being checked out at a local hospital,” Shea said. “The ultimate plan is to return her to her family.”
Her abductor, 41-year-old Robert Gonzalez, was arrested, Shea said.
“He’s being held on a kidnapping charge that emanates out of Rochester, New York,” Shea said. “That’ll be worked out in the courts when he returns back to face those charges.”
The teenager was abducted from LaSalle Street in Rochester around 7 p.m. Saturday, according to local news site RochesterFirst.com, and was believed to be with Gonzalez at the time.
Investigator tracked the pair to New York City, where police were able to locate them and bring Coates to safety.
Shea credited the work of the NYPD’s Regional Fugitive Task Force — among other tools in the department’s belt — for the rescue.




