Missing Couple Found at Disney!

[Seahunt]

After being reported missing with a huge search effort, they have been discovered at a hotel close to WDW!

ORLANDO, Florida (CNN) -- Two Michigan State University students missing since July 26 were found Saturday in a hotel near Walt Disney World, police said.

"They're fine -- according to what they told us, they were taking a vacation," said Elise Camille, a spokeswoman for the sheriff's office in Orange County, Florida.

The couple, 21-year-old Justin Gouveia of Lowell, Massachusetts, and 19-year-old Danela Alfaro-Lopez of Dearborn, Michigan -- were found after police came across their blue 2002 Kia Rio during a routine check in the parking lot of the Inn Town Suites just outside Orlando, Camille said.

Alfaro-Lopez told police that her mother told her not travel with her boyfriend to Florida from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and, to avoid being found, they did not use their cell phones or credit cards, Camille said.

"She said she was 19 and was going to do whatever she wanted to," Camille said. "We just told them to call their parents."

Whether they return to their families "is up to them," she said. "No crime has been committed. We cannot tell them to go back home. They are adults. It's really up to them."

The couple met three years ago at Disney World, and Gouveia transferred to Michigan State University to be with Alfaro-Lopez.

"I'm so grateful that they're found," said Susan Flynn, Gouveia great aunt, who was reached at the parents' home in Lowell. "At the same time, I'm so confused as to why my nephew would ever put his mom and dad through this. I just can't believe that part. I just can't believe that they did this."

Gouveia was interning this summer with the Boston Harbor unit of the Massachusetts State Police. After their Cape Cod vacation, they had told their parents they planned to visit Gouveia's parents in Maine, Flynn said.

Both are pre-law students.

 

[browneyes]

When I was 19 yo, my mother would've been mortified to try to tell me where to go and who to go with where. I'm glad the couple are ok, but I bet this causes a big riff between mother and daughter, if there wasn't one already.

 

[Margie J]

Something told me that this is the way things would end. They had his Mom on the local news tonight telling her son "you did nothing wrong". Nothing wrong .... just have the State Police, FBI and others out looking for your bodies but there's nothing wrong with that. Just waste all the effort, emotion and money. Nothing wrong with that. Did these two ever hear of a PHONE!

Pre-law student to boot. I'll bet they will make really honest Lawyers some day. That's what we need more of don't we.

Sorry if I am coming off cold on this issue. After a false "amber alert" here this week and then this case I am mad that people's emotions are being played with. It's great that we have Police and security that work hard on real cases of kidnapping and missing people but it shouldn't be abused.

 

[PamOKW]

The parents were being featured on the NYC news as well. I kidnd of think I saw them on Today or GMA, also. I think they kicked off the panic because they told the family they were going to meet them and never showed.

Well, at least they know where to go to have fun.

 

[SuprGro78]

I am from Boston too and I did see the amber alert. I didn't think it turned out to be false. On the news the police said that they feared for the childrens saftey. I am for anything that keeps kids safe. Anyway back to the news at hand. I think that those kids should be responsible for restitution to all the resources used to find them. They should also go back on GMA and the TODAY show and issue a public apology. Don't let them get away with this ridiculousness.

 

[Margie J]

Here's more on the recent Amber Alert:

Mother Charged After Amber Alert Helps Find Children

NewsCenter 5's Lynn Jolicouer reported that it is the first time the state's Amber Alert has been used in the Bay State. The children were allegedly abducted in the central Massachusetts town of Dudley, and were later found unharmed in nearby Southbridge, Mass.

Tracy Manilla, 35, appeared before a judge in Dudley District Court Friday. He allowed her to stay outside the courtroom during the arraignment. She is charged with kidnapping and endangering her children.

One day earlier, the woman's husband, Christopher Mannila, appeared in probate court and filed for custody of the couple's children -- Kayla, 9, Cody, 7 and Chase, 5. He was granted temporary custody while the divorce was pending, but a few hours later, his estranged wife, Tracy Mannila, allegedly attacked him and took off with the children.

Police said that Tracy Mannila assaulted her husband at the house were he is staying with the children. She then allegedly drove off with the kids. Police mobilized and issued the state's first Amber Alert.

TV and radio stations cut into broadcasting and announced the alleged kidnapping.

"She has nothing to say other than she will be awaiting her pre-trial conference on Nov. 19. She proclaims her innocence, and intends to fight the charges," defense attorney Christopher Monroy said.

One of Tracy Mannila's friends said that the mother brought the kids to hang out at a campground.

"We were very surprised. The kids were watching TV on the couch, and they were on TV. As soon as we saw that, I called their father. I know that she came there to visit me, and she wasn't posing any threat to the kids at the time," Tracy Mannila's friend, Michelle, said.

Police picked up the children in Southbridge and placed Tracy Mannila under arrest. After questioning, officials sent the children home with their father.

Officials said that it is not the first time that police have had issues with the family.

Tracy Mannila was released on personal recognizance. The judge ordered her to wear an electronic monitoring device and stay away from her children.



From a previous report:

"We received information that possibly the children could be in danger ... we didn't have anything specific, just threats to their safety, basically," said Dudley Police Chief Steve Wojnar.


"We were very surprised, actually, because the kids were just watching TV on the couch and said, 'We're on TV,' and as soon as I saw that, I called their father," said the friend, who identified herself only as Michelle. "I'm not aware of any threats or anything else that was said. I know that she came there to visit me and she wasn't posing any threat to the kids at the time."



After reading reports like this I think this is more a case of two parents using their kids and the system as pawns in their troubled relationship. I'm all for protecting kids and am glad that the Amber Alert system is in place. I just hope adults trying to get back at their kid's parents don't begin to use this improperly.

This whole story just smacks me as false. Sorry, it's only my opinion. Others may read it differently.

 

[floridafam]

I hope their parents give them an earful. The boy shouldn't be allowed to continue his internship with the State Police or wherever he was working.

Everyone I talked to here in town thought something terrible had happened.

They should be ashamed

 

[Planogirl]

I don't understand the girl's mother telling the girl not to go and then the girl lying to her mother about it. Does she still live at home? If so, she should be truthful but if she's on her own she certainly shouldn't have to tell her mother where she's going even though it would be a nice thing to do. And why didn't the guy just tell his parents he was going to WDW? I guess that it's late and I'm not following the story too well.

 

[house_of_princesses]

I guess that it's late and I'm not following the story too well.

PlanoGirl, You can't make sense out of senseless actions! (Tired or otherwise!)

 

[wdwnutze]

Glad to hear that they are safe! Their poor parents! What they did was wrong no matter how you look at it.

 

[beccab]

Another factor on the two teens is that they had reservations at the inn in Yarmouthport ma for two nights & left early a.m. after just one night making the situation even more suspicious.

I too thought it was probably wrong choice of words for the mother to be saying "you did nothing wrong" but she must have been out of her mind with worry and wanted her son home. I too think they should be punished or reprimanded in some way. Restitution would be fine.

The Amber alert activation in Mass could have been a knee jerk reaction stemming from the recent kidnapping & murder of the two children from N.H. They were taken by their father & authorities have been searching for their bodies since. Apparently, the father admitted to killing the children.

 

[shortbun]

Since we don't know the situation between these families,
I'm not judging the two students. Could be they were tired of
constant controlling behavior of the girls family and had to resort to this to get out from under it. That being the case, the boy
could have somehow let his family know he was ok but boys
don't always think emotionally-we teach 'em not to, remember?
I guess if I were the parents and I was really mad, I'd cut off
the money. Or maybe these two are totally self sufficient- that
being the case, it's no one's business what they do. Hey, it's not about me anyway so I'm not judging them.

 

[jcemom]

It was thoughtless for these two to put their parents through such an ordeal. But I don't think it's all that uncommon for young people to do thoughtless things. They'll won't understand until they have kids of their own!

That being said, I don't see why they should be responsible for any type of restitution. They are over the age of 18 and free to go where they please, when they please, and with whom they please. Letting their parents know probably would have been the "right" thing (I don't know their personal situations/relationships), but I doubt there's a law saying they "must tell their parents where they are at all times."

Of course, if the parents are providing them with financial support/paying for schooling, it would be within reason for them to stop paying.

 

[robinb]

Police said that Tracy Mannila assaulted her husband at the house were he is staying with the children. She then allegedly drove off with the kids. Police mobilized and issued the state's first Amber Alert.

I am trying to figure out how this is a "false" Amber Alert. The fact that the children were actually OK and just watching TV? Isn't that the outcome we want from every Amber Alert? The mom kidnapped her kids. If the policed diddled around before issuing the Amber Alert and she hurt her kids, then you would all be upset that they didn't do enough soon enough.

 

[emmy]

Glad they were found safe- I really did not think that would be the outcome!

AS for the AMBER alert- I think it worked just like it should have. I doubt the kids would have been brought back so soon and safely if it was not issued. This happened right down the streeet from us and I have known the mother since high school- so maybe that is also influencing my take on it.

 

[PamOKW]

The real shame with these two teens is that next time the police may be reluctant to stage a search for someone else. There's also some question as to why they didn't use their credit cards or their cell phones. Maybe they were staging the "disappearance" for attention. Their families might have even been involved. People do all kinds of crazy things. There are reports every day about people who fabricated loved ones to collect from the 9/11 tragedy.

 

[Cinders]

Pay restitution and loose his internship??!!?? WHY? They didnt break any laws. They are adults who took a vacation. I've seen countless posts on this board about people complaining about how bad their in-laws are, how friends and family dont understand why we take WDW vacations, and about people dreading telling relatives they are taking another vacation to WDW. Why should the 2 students be any different from the rest of the people on this board? The girl said her mom told her not to go to FL and it also said thats where the couple met....use a little common sense and the parents could have found them in WDW right away. As for them not calling once they were there, I know we never watch the news when we're there so they possibly had no reason to believe the parents would overreact.

They should also go back on GMA and the TODAY show and issue a public apology.

They didnt go on there.....the parents did. The parents should go back on and apologize maybe but not the students. The media sure latched onto this story because it was about 2 white students with money.....where are they for all the children that are missing in the USA?

 

[Desnik]

Cinders I completely agree with you!! Well said.
I don't understand why these parents overeacted and got the police and FBI involved. If the girls mother told her she wasn't allowed to go to Fl. these parents obviously knew their children were planning a vacation. These "kids" are adults. The parents are the ones who need to apologize on tv and make restitutions. They sound controling to me. How do you tell a 21yo and 19yo who are away at college, law students, getting a good education, how do you tell them where to go and who with?
Gosh at 21 I was out of the house, married and pregnant!! Imagine my parents telling me what to do

 

[vald1977]

First off, I am glad that nothing did happen to the college students and that they are safe and sound. However, what they did was totally irresponsible!! If I had a 19 year old child who went on vacation, never officially checked out of their hotel, told me they were meeting up with family in Maine and never showed up, wouldn't answer their phone, and hadn't made contact with me in two weeks, I would be out of my mind with worry trying as hard as I could to find him/her! I can't imagine a caring parent who wouldn't be.

Fine, they are "adults". They can go off to wdw if they want to. But they should have let someone know of their plans. Being responsible is part of being an adult! I'm married and live on my own and wouldn't dream of taking off for two weeks without letting my parents know I would be out of town. And I certainly wouldn't make myself untraceable by turning off my cell phone and not using my cc. The student's behavior was just wrong. I really hope that the next time someone 19 goes missing, the police will still take it seriously. Bad things can happen to anybody at any age.

 

[Desnik]

I just wanted to add something. Maybe this girl isn't close to her family. Maybe they are nuts, or annoying, whatever. Why do we assume they are irresponsible? Maybe they just wanted to get away from it all for awhile and they had no idea their parents would take it as far as they did.

When I go away I tell my mom and sis because I am close to them, but my father doesn't know until I get back or someone else tells him.