Missing Girl, 4, Was Kidnapped, Police Say

After searching Echo Park Lake for two days for the body of a missing 4-year-old, police said Monday night that they believe she was abducted in the park by a man with a Chihuahua.

Divers had been combing the lake since Jessica Cortez disappeared Sunday evening and her 5-year-old brother said he had last seen her in the water. But on Monday afternoon, police received a call from someone who said they had seen a girl leaving the park with a man and his dog, Capt. Douglas Shur said.

Officers who had been canvassing the neighborhood door-to-door learned from other residents that a man with a Chihuahua had recently been seen in the park talking to children. By Monday night, Shur said, police were almost certain Jessica had been abducted.

“In the last few hours, we have switched to make this an abduction as opposed to a drowning, and we have had additional information that has led us to believe that we are focusing on a specific individual,” Shur said.

However, divers will resume their search of the lake at 10 a.m. to make certain her body is not there, he said.

Police issued an “Amber alert” for the man, described as African American or Latino, weighing 160 to 180 pounds, 5-feet-8 to 6 feet tall, 20 to 25 years old, with a tattoo of a cross on his lower left leg. He was wearing blue shorts and a white T-shirt. The new alert system notifies media outlets of child abductions.

Police also distributed fliers in English throughout the mostly Spanish-speaking neighborhood, for which Shur apologized. “We will correct that next time,” he said.

Jessica’s parents pleaded with her kidnapper for her safe return.

“Don’t be afraid of the police,” her father, Rafael Cortez, said. “Please return her safe. Please bring her back.”

FBI officials arrived at the lake about 10:30 p.m. Monday.

Jessica’s parents were selling food at the park Sunday when she disappeared about 7:30 p.m. Police were notified at about 9 p.m. Within an hour, a team of 10 divers were searching the water.

They swam for more than five hours before resting for the night. On Monday, 30 divers split into four teams and began searching the lake at 3 p.m.

Earlier Monday, Rampart Division Watch Cmdr. Michael Daly said investigators had not ruled out the possibility of kidnapping, but had “nothing to indicate” that’s what happened.

Officials issued an “Amber alert” Monday morning but then canceled it. California Highway Patrol Assistant Chief Art Acevedo said authorities had “erred on the side of caution.”

Daly said search dogs canvassed the park Sunday night but found no trace of the girl. Before divers entered the water the next day, two cadaver dogs were ferried around the lake’s north end. Pasquariello said the dogs could sense oils released by a decaying body.

The search focused on the north shore of the lake and around an island accessible by a bridge.

The lake varies from a depth of two feet at the edges to up to seven feet near the bridge, said Vicki Israel, a Department of Recreation and Parks supervisor.

Israel said the last patrol guard, responsible for checking the lake and returning paddle boats to a dock, was at the boathouse until 8:30 p.m., but the disappearance had not been reported.

Andy Martinez said she told police Monday that she and her 8-year-old daughter recognized the man in the sketch police were distributing. About a month ago, she said, he was in the park talking to children in a deep voice.

Rosa Casteneda, a family friend, said Jessica is a “beautiful, happy child ... always very happy, always playing.”

“I hope people will bring her back,” Jessica’s father said.