8 p.m. Update
Police in Topeka say three young siblings have been found unharmed along a trail about 20 hours after their parents reported them missing.
Capt. Jerry Stanley says in a statement the two girls and their brother were found “safe but hungry” around 7:15 p.m. Thursday, playing in a creek along the Shunga Trail.
That’s just a few miles from the home where their parents reported them missing shortly before 11 p.m. Wednesday.
Stanley says a citizen spotted the children and called police.
The children were identified as 13-year-old Stephanie Witten, 12-year-old Seth Witten and 10-year-old Michelle Witten.
Police had said throughout the search they did not suspect foul play. No Amber Alerts were issued.
No Amber Alert was issued for 13-year-old Stephanie Witten, 12-year-old Seth Witten and 10-year-old Michelle Witten after their parents reported them missing around 11 p.m. Wednesday. Topeka police Capt. Jerry Stanley said the search by multiple agencies remained confined late Thursday afternoon to the city limits.
He said nearly a dozen tips called into law enforcement matched the description of the three children — the two girls with waist-length hair and their brother with short, dark hair.
Authorities don’t believe foul play is involved based on interviews with the parents, he said.
“There are some background issues with the family, but it doesn’t lead to anything criminal,” Stanley said, declining to elaborate.
Stanley said the biggest concern was whether the three children were getting food and water in the intense heat.
“We don’t want them out there,” he said.
The children’s mother, Kathy Witten, told The Topeka Capital-Journal she left them home with her husband, William, on Wednesday evening while she ran an errand with the couple’s 2-year-old daughter and her mother. Witten said her husband, William, later left the three children home alone when he went to a gym to work out, and they were gone when the parents arrived back home.
The three children, who are biological siblings, were adopted by the Wittens in 2007.
Without going into detail, she said her oldest daughter had been involved in a similar incident about a year ago. But the younger two hadn’t gone missing before Wednesday night.
“I’m just not sure how she got the younger ones out,” Witten said. “We hadn’t been fighting. There were no blow-ups. Just normal, daily stuff.”
7:30 p.m. update Topeka Police have confirmed that the 3 missing children have been found and are safe. They were being examined, questioned and reunited with family.
(AP) – Law enforcement officers are looking for three missing Topeka children.
Topeka police say the 13-, 12- and 10-year-old children were reported missing late Wednesday from a home in West Topeka.
Police Lt. John Sturgeon says there is no early indication of foul play.
The missing are 13-year-old Stephanie Witten, 5-feet and 95 pounds with brown hair, wearing a white top and blue skirt; 12-year-old Seth Witten, 4-10 and 85 pounds with brown hair and wearing a red shirt and blue jeans; and 10-year-old Michelle Witten, 4-8 tall and 75 pounds with brown hair and a pink shirt.