Movers Use Truck to Help Save Toddler in Amber Alert

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Around 7am on Feb. 22 in Phoenix, a convenience-store security guard spotted a 3-year-old girl whose face he recognized from an Amber Alert. The guard believed he'd just seen the child, who'd vanished from her home two days earlier, and the woman suspected of taking her stroll into the store. Camelback Moving foreman Kevin Place overheard the guard on the phone with police and sprinted to his truck to tell his co-workers. The movers then used their truck to box in the vehicle until police arrived minutes later, taking 23-year-old Marina Noriega into custody and recovering little Kehlani Rogers, who was later reunited with her parents in good health.

Why it matters

This incident highlights the importance of the Amber Alert system in helping to quickly locate and recover abducted children. The quick actions of the security guard and the moving company employees likely saved the young girl from further harm.

The details

After comparing the guard's photo with the Amber Alert, Place and his co-workers jotted down the license plate of the car waiting for the woman and toddler, where a man was waiting in the driver's seat. The movers then used their roughly 30-foot truck to box in the vehicle until police arrived minutes later, taking 23-year-old Marina Noriega into custody. Authorities say Noriega, a "recent acquaintance" of the family, is charged with felony custodial interference on $250,000 bond.

• On Feb. 22, the incident occurred around 7am in Phoenix.
• Two days earlier, on Feb. 20, the 3-year-old girl had vanished from her home.

What’s next

The judge will decide on Tuesday whether to allow Marina Noriega out on bail.