FILE PHOTO
Laura Ofurie.
BY GAYLA CAWLEY
LYNN — Laura Ofurie, the 8-year-old Lynn girl who was missing for seven hours before being found in the Nahant Rotary playground, was a runaway.
Acting on a tip from social media, Ofurie was discovered unharmed more than a mile from her 11 Shepard St. home by police She was found shortly after 10 p.m. in the tot lot next to the beach and well-traveled rotary.
“We believe she was walking,” said Lynn Police Lt. Rick Donnelly. “There is nothing criminal and we’ve closed this case. And now it’s out of our hands.”
Police have filed a report with the state about a possible problem in the household where the child lives. The case is being handled by the Department of Children and Families, Donnelly said.
After she was found, the child was taken to North Shore Medical Center in Salem for evaluation with her father, Edward Ofurie.
When questioned by police, she was unable to explain her whereabouts, Donnelly said.
Ofurie was picked up by her father from Harrington Elementary School at 1:45 p.m. Monday and he noticed her missing about half an hour later. Police were called to the apartment building just off Lynn Common at 3 p.m.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley.
