Missing Fairmont Juvenile Recovered by U.S. Marshals Task Force in Harpers Ferry, WV

Martinsburg, WV – On October 22, 2020, the United States Marshals Service in Clarksburg, West Virginia was asked by the Fairmont Police Department to assist in locating a missing juvenile who ran away from foster care on September 28, 2020. Investigators with the Fairmont Police Department, Marion County Sheriff's Office and U.S. Marshals Service quickly developed information that the missing child may be in Charles Town, West Virginia.

The U.S. Marshals Service in Martinsburg, West Virginia working with the Charles Town Police Department, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Martinsburg Police Department and West Virginia State Police, over a two day period, followed a series of leads enabling them to locate and recover the missing juvenile in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia on October 28, 2020.

The juvenile was turned over to West Virginia Child Protective Services to ensure their safe return.

"The combined efforts, professionalism and teamwork from all of the agencies involved was instrumental in the recovery and safe return of this child," said U.S. Marshal Raffety.

The U.S. Marshals Service was given authority to assist state and local law enforcement when requested under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act passed in 2015. Since then the Marshals Service has been working jointly with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and their state and local counterparts to recover missing and endangered children.

The U.S. Marshals Service is the nation's oldest federal law enforcement agency, having served the country since 1789.