This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A 2-year-old girl, found wandering down a dark street early Tuesday morning in her pajamas, remained Wednesday in the custody of Utah child welfare officials looking into whether she will be returned to her parents.
The girl, located about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday after a passer-by spotted her in the area of 40th and Madison and called police, was in good health.
However, the discovery of the wandering child had prompted police to issue an alert, along with the child's picture, in hopes someone recognized her. Officers had been going door-to-door in the area where the girl was found, as well as initially driving her through the neighborhood to see if she recognized her home.
Some 11 hours later, just after noon Tuesday, the father of the girl contacted police as they were searching, said Sgt. Trent Olsen.
He told officers that both he and his wife worked a swing shift, and while they were gone their 15-year-old boy was supposed to be watching the girl. However, police believe that the child actually went missing sometime after the parents had arrived home, Olsen said Wednesday.
Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances.
Meanwhile, the girl remained in the custody of child welfare officials, who planned to hold a hearing on the case sometime Thursday, Olsen said.
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