Abducted San Jose 2-year-old found safe; Mother suspected in kidnapping still at large
SAN JOSE -- A two-year-old girl taken from her San Jose home Wednesday afternoon by her non-custodial mother was found safe Thursday, police said.
Thursday morning, San Jose police announced that Crystal Mendez had taken her two-year-old daughter -- named Tayana -- from a residence on the 5000 block of Charlotte Avenue in San Jose Wednesday afternoon at around 3 p.m. The abduction was reported by family services and child protective services personnel, police said.
San Jose police announced that the girl had been found safe Thursday afternoon at 4:23 p.m. Police said she was located with at a relative's home in Oakland. Officers are coordinating her return to family in San Jose.
Mendez has not been located, police said.
We have located Tayana. She is safe and with our Officers; we are coordinating her return to San José. She was located with at a relatives home in the city of Oakland.
— San José Police Media Relations (@SJPD_PIO) February 17, 2023
Suspect Mendez is still at large. She is still wanted for this incident.
We appreciate all the RTs. pic.twitter.com/441SFpzliX
Mendez and the toddler were last seen on surveillance video Wednesday afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum BART station. She was also seen earlier on surveillance video at a San Jose light rail station.
Police said Mendez has known ties to the Tenderloin District in San Francisco. She is a heavy drug user and has a tattoo of the name "Dante" on her neck. Her last known residence was the basement of a home on Turk Street.
Mendez stands 5-foot-1, weighs 150 pounds, has long brown hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a white hooded jacket, black skinny jeans with ripped knees and dark colored sneakers.
The stroller was black and teal. Tayana was last seen wearing a white jacket with pink sleeves and blue colored pants.