Portland police are hoping someone who saw 13-year-old Ayla Venavle of Vancouver in Portland after 3 p.m. Friday will call 911 immediately.
Ayla was last seen about 1 p.m. near Portland’s Lloyd Center Mall, according to a bulletin from the Portland Police Bureau.
That’s when her mother had dropped her off to meet a male she had met on the Internet, the bulletin said.
Ayla was supposed to return to the mall and meet her family by 3 p.m. ,but she didn’t appear and hasn’t been seen since.
Here is the full bulletin from Portland police, who ask that anyone who sees the girl will call 911, or a Portland detective working the case:
PORTLAND POLICE BUREAU NEWS RELEASE
13-Year-Old Vancouver Girl Missing From Lloyd Center Mall Area
Portland Police Bureau Missing Persons Detectives have been working with North Precinct officers and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office to locate 13-year-old Ayla Venavle (pronounced “Veh-na-vle”). Ayla was last seen at about 1:00 p.m. this afternoon, March 23, 2012, after her mother and 2 siblings dropped her off outside the Lloyd Center Mall, to meet up with a male subject Ayla had met on an internet website.
Ayla was supposed to meet her family back at the mall at 3:00 p.m., but has not been seen or heard from since. She and the male subject were last seen, on foot, at the east end of the mall, outside Sears. They may have walked towards Holladay Park, but their destination was unknown.
Portland Police North Precinct and Reserve Police officers jointly searched with Lloyd Center Security, store-to-store within the mall, for Ayla and the male subject, and have scoured the areas surrounding Lloyd Center, including the nearby cinemas.
Investigators has determined there is a possibility that Ayla may have run away, although family members have advised that she has never done so before. There is also concern that she may become medically endangered, as she is in need of daily medication. The family only recently moved to the Portland/Vancouver metropolitan area, from a small town in Kansas, and Ayla is reportedly not familiar with the metro area’s mass transit system.
Ayla is described as a white female, 13 years old, 5’2” tall, weighing 120 pounds. She has long, straight, light-brown hair, with her bangs pulled back, blue eyes, and wears glasses. She was last seen wearing a black zippered hoodie jacket with white fleece, over a dark-blue shirt, blue jeans with embroidered rear pockets, and mid-calf grey boots.
The unknown male subject Ayla was last seen with is described as being approximately 15-17 years old, dark or olive-skinned, 5’6” — 5’8” tall with a medium build. He was described as appearing clean-cut and clean-shaven, with short, dark-brown hair. He was last seen wearing a grey hoodie jacket, blue jeans and a white knit cap with black trim. It is unknown if the male subject was associated with a vehicle.
Anyone who knows of Ayla’s whereabouts is asked to immediately call 9-1-1. Anyone with additional information about this case is asked to contact Detective Mike Weinstein, Portland Police Bureau Missing Persons Unit at (503) 823-0446.
