9-Year-Old Charlotte Sena Vanishes on Family Trip — Only Her Bike Was Found

New York State Police activated an Amber Alert after Charlotte Sena went missing during a camping trip. Authorities believe she was abducted and is in grave danger after her bike was found in the loop she was going around. Several teams have been deployed to find her to no avail.

It was around 6:45 p.m. on September 30, 2023, when Charlotte Sena went missing while biking around Moreau Lake State Park. The nine-year-old and her family were camping in Upstate New York with friends, enjoying good weather and good food, when the incident happened.

Charlotte and her friends, whom she considers family, were biking around the loop road. It was dinnertime, with the darkness yet to settle in. Charlotte's friends had already decided to end their activity, but the young girl wanted to go around another loop by herself.

Family, Friends, and Authorities Have Been Searching for Charlotte since Saturday

Fifteen minutes later, she hadn't returned. Charlotte's parents immediately knew something was wrong and began searching for their daughter. Soon, more and more people from other campgrounds helped look for Charlotte to no avail. People left their food and activities to join the search, but Charlotte was nowhere to be found. However, those looking for Charlotte found her bike on the loop.

At 6:47, Charlotte's mother, Trisha, dialed 911, and since authorities arrived on site, the investigation has not stopped. Everyone worked tirelessly to fund the missing girl and immediately took action to release an alert. The authorities deployed several resources to find Charlotte, including aviation, dogs, drones, underwater rescue, and more.

Authorities Activated an Amber Alert

An Amber Alert was activated on Sunday around 9:30 a.m. in hopes to spread the the news about Charlotte. The young girl was last seen wearing an orange tie-dye Pokemon shirt, navy blue pants, black Crocs, and a gray bike helmet.

Unfortunately, authorities strongly believe the missing child's case is an abduction and that Charlotte is in "imminent danger of serious harm or death."

According to police description, Charlotte weighs 90 pounds, stands five foot and one inch, and has long blonde hair. Several pictures of the missing girl were also posted on social media to spread awareness and information on her description.

Unfortunately, authorities strongly believe the missing child's case is an abduction and that Charlotte is in "imminent danger of serious harm or death." New York State Police's Lt. Colonel Richard L. Mazzone said:

"We took that step of issuing the AMBER alert because we felt, after (our) exhaustive search, when we couldn't find her here, it was quite possible that an abduction had taken place."

Governor Kathy Hochul Issued a Public Statement

Charlotte, a fourth-grade student well-loved by her peers, was recently elected to the student council. She is described as a nice and joyful person who easily makes friends with her classmates. Governor Kathy Hochul publicly addressed the situation, saying:

"I just met with Charlotte's parents, David and Trisha, obviously distraught. And as a mother and as a grandmother, I cannot imagine the pain they're going through."

Hochul promised Charlotte's parents that the authorities would find their daughter and urged everyone to pray and keep an eye open. She also reminded everyone to give the authorities an update should they discover any helpful information. The Sena family also released a statement, claiming they only wanted to be reunited with their daughter. They welcomed all tips, big or small, that would help the case.

As of October 2, 2023, over 100 personnel and 75 law enforcement authorities have joined the search mission. Several dogs, six underwater rescue teams, two boars, and two drones have also been deployed. Technology experts have also been tapped to analyze different forms of communication in the park.

In a similar story, another family on a camping trip faced their worst nightmare when a tragic occurrence left their eight-year-old twin girl and family dog dead. The devastating accident was unpredictable and inevitable.