A young girl from South Alabama has been rescued and returned home after being kidnapped in September from Orange Beach by her mother and taken to Mexico.
According to sources, Kionii Haugen, 3, was reportedly taken to the country by Haley Harris, 23, to be handed off as a debt payment owed to a cartel. The debt was reportedly not Harris' own, but her current boyfriend's, who is allegedly an illegal alien with a previous record of child molestation and ties to organized crime in Mexico.
Haugen's safe return on Sunday was partly made possible through the hard work of U.S. Rep. Barry Moore's (R-Enterprise) office and the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office.
"Three-year-old Kionii arrived back in the United States today and has been reunited with her family in Baldwin County, and I couldn't be more proud of the work Team Moore did to help make this happen," Moore told 1819 News.
"When my team heard about this situation, they immediately went to work with the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Marshals, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office to make sure she was brought home safely. "
"Heather and I are continuing to pray for Kionii and her family and we hope everyone across Alabama will join us," he added.
Moore also expressed gratitude towards all of the agencies involved.
Baldwin County Sheriff Anthony Lowery spoke to 1819 News about bringing the child back safe and unharmed.
"I don't know that I can put bringing her home into words because I'm gonna tell you the first couple of days I was physically sick about the whole situation. But today, there have been tears of joy," Lowery said. "We've had this little girl gone for this amount of time and everything that it took to get her back. I just couldn't be more proud."
Harris was tracked through her "digital footprint" from Orange Beach to California and later to Mexico by the Sheriff's digital forensics team.
"Our digital forensics people, the case that they laid out and were able to turn over to our federal partners to get her back. I'm extremely proud. That's something we've been building here at the Sheriff's Office for the past couple of years, knowing that's the way of the world."
"For them to be able to get on that and be able to track her across the country into Mexico to actually the house where she was, that's outstanding work," Lowery concluded.
Lowery wished to thank U.S. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Montgomery) for playing a role in the rescue.
Former Green Beret Joshua McKee of Robertsdale, also a GOP candidate for Alabama's first congressional seat, also participated in the effort, partnering with rescue groups Silent Knight and Project Dynamo to return Haugen.
"Working in conjunction with Silent Knight and Project Dynamo, we were able to provide and validate information to help facilitate the rescue of Kionii Haugen back to the United States and out of the hands of the cartel," he said.
"I'm proud of the work of the U.S. State Department, Homeland Security and the various partners involved in bringing her home."
State Sen. Chris Elliott (R-Josephine), who represents a portion of Baldwin County, praised the officials who helped bring Haugen home.
"I can't begin to thank Sheriff Anthony Lowrey and the incredible technical experience of the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office, who successfully tracked Kionii or Congressman Barry Moore and Senator Katie Britt, who tenaciously and expertly pressured every level of the Federal government to get her back quickly," he told 1819 News.
"This is one of those times where government worked. It makes the rest worthwhile. Welcome home Kionii," Elliott added.
Harris and the father of the young girl had agreed to a two-day visitation period, but shortly after she picked Kionii up, the two boarded a plane bound for San Diego, with prearranged travel plans made for south of the border in Mexico.
Harris has been charged with international parental kidnapping and is currently being held in Atlanta.
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