Florida girl, 12, stole dad’s car and took friend on 400-mile drive to possibly see person they met online

A 12-year-old girl from Florida took her father’s car and drove for 400 miles to possibly meet someone she met online, accompanied by a 14-year-old friend. The incident has raised concerns about online safety for children and the need for parents to monitor their children’s internet use.

The Drive

According to the Union County Sheriff’s Office, the two girls left their homes on Thursday morning and drove for most of the day, covering 400 miles across three states. The girls’ identities will not be public.

They eventually turned themselves in after seeing their own missing children’s report while at a gas station in Bayou La Batre, Alabama¹.

Online Safety for Children

The incident has raised concerns about the dangers of online communication for children and the need for parents to monitor their children’s internet use. The overall rate of police-reported incidents of online child sexual exploitation and abuse has been on an upward trend, increasing from 50 incidents per 100,000 population in 2014, when cybercrime data were first collected nationally, to 131 per 100,000 in 2020².

Experts recommend that parents regularly talk to their children about online safety, including the risks associated with sharing personal information and meeting people online. Parents should also monitor their children’s internet use, including the websites they visit and the people they communicate with online.

Legal Consequences

The 12-year-old driver is too young to be charged with a crime in Florida, but the case has been referred to the FBI about the nature of the girl’s conversation with their “online friend”. After a brief review, the Chief Deputy stated there were definitely “suspicious circumstances” that raised “reds flags” from what he had seen from their interactions. 

The incident involving the two young girls highlights the need for parents to monitor their children’s online activity and talk to them about the potential dangers of communicating with strangers online. While the girls were fortunate to have escaped unharmed, the incident could have had far more serious consequences.

Keep Reading: Married father kills himself after talking to AI chatbot for six weeks