For 26 excruciating days, Frank Gervasi searched for his 14-year-old daughter, Emmarae, who disappeared from their Long Island home early December.
The search ended Friday when Gervasi found Emmarae alive on a boat docked in Islip, Long Island. Reports suggest the father received an anonymous tip about her location, which ultimately led to her rescue.
Gervasi has expressed his belief that Emmarae was sex-trafficked during her disappearance. Investigators are looking into the allegations.
"I did find her myself before police got there," Gervasi told News 12. " ... Seeing her alive in my arms, it was a gift from God. I can't describe the feeling I had when I grabbed her."
Emmarae was last seen on December 9, reportedly leaving home without shoes or a jacket, according to the New York Post. Surveillance footage from the following day captured her knocking on doors at a motel before she vanished again.
Gervasi shared online his daughter had initially left with someone she met on the internet but was later dropped off and picked up by an elderly man. He identified this individual as Francis Buckheit, 65, from Islip.
"She was being forced to do things that a 14-year-old girl shouldn't have to do...So I do believe this is sex-trafficking, and it's being looked into," Gervasi per the New York Post.
Police and prosecutors have not confirmed the suspect's identity. However, court records indicate a man matching that name and age was arraigned on charges of rape, kidnapping, and acting in a manner injurious to a child.
"There was an arrest made in the case and at this time additional inquiries will be directed to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office," police said in an email to the New York Post.
The suspect is being held without bail and will appear in court later this week.
"This was 26 days of pure hell," Gervasi repeated in an Instagram video. He thanked the community for their support but criticized some for their apathy, "How would you show up for your family?...As fathers we need to show up for our family."
For now, Emmarae is recovering and receiving care in a hospital.
Between 2019 and 2020, Facebook reported a 125% spike in trafficking-related activity, while Instagram saw a 95% increase. According to anti-trafficking organizations, every two minutes, a child is sold into trafficking.
Today, 4.8 million people are victims of sex trafficking globally, with an estimated 300,000 American children falling prey to commercial sexual exploitation each year.
Originally published on Latin Times
