Suffolk County police announced Monday that they have made an arrest in the mysterious case of a 14-year-old girl who went missing from her home nearly a month ago.
The arrest in Emarae Gervasi's case came days after police found the girl alone on a boat moored in Islip, but had few clues about how she got there. .
Police did not provide details about the suspect in the case, and questions were referred to the county district attorney's office, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The girl went missing on Dec. 9 after leaving home without shoes or a jacket, and was last seen getting into a car outside the Patchogue home. The next day, she was seen on surveillance camera knocking on a door at a motel in Bohemia before disappearing again.
Her father, Frank Gervasi, said in a series of Facebook posts that he was leading the search for his daughter, who initially set off with a man she met online but was later dropped off and then later reported to have been found. He claimed to have been picked up at random. A 65 year old stranger.
In a post over the weekend, he said he believed Emmarae was a victim of sex trafficking and was “forced to do things no 14-year-old should ever do.”
On Monday, Frank Gervasi abruptly canceled an interview with the Post to care for his daughter, but said her daughter was doing well under the circumstances.
