A New Jersey teen who disappeared last month after taking a trip to a New Jersey deli was found safe in New York City, authorities say.
JaShyah Moore, 14, was located in the city and is being returned to New Jersey, acting Essex County, N.J., prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens said in a news release on Thursday evening.
Stephens said that JaShyah, who is from East Orange, N.J., was safe and is being provided "all appropriate services." The deli where she was last seen is about 25 miles from Harlem, where she was found.
Authorities did not immediately disclose what happened to the 14-year-old while she was missing or how she ended up in New York City, though Stephens is planning to hold a news conference Friday morning with more details on the case.
According to New York TV station PIX11 News, the New York Police Department (NYPD) said a "sharp-eyed good Samaritan" spotted JaShyah in Harlem Thursday.
The local broadcaster said the person went over to the teen and asked her if she was JaShyah, to which she initially responded, "no," as if she did not want to be recognized.
The NYPD told PIX11 News that JaShyah was taken to a local police precinct where she ultimately told officers she had been "unhappy at home."
JaShyah was last seen on the morning of Oct. 14 after she took a trip to Poppies Deli, according to a release from the city of East Orange. The teen had earlier gone to the store to pick up items for her family.
The Essex County Crime Stoppers offered a reward of up to $20,000 to try to help find the teen.
"She did not run away. She was abducted. I don't know who did it, but we're looking for you," JaShyah's mother, Jamie Moore, said at a news conference on Wednesday.
Stephens said earlier this week that more than 50 law enforcement officers were searching the area, retracing the teen's steps and following up on old and new leads.
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