SEATTLE — Two 17-year-olds who were last seen on Sunday have been found and are OK.
"I found my son and his girlfriend in Spokane! They are safe! Thank you for all your efforts, prayers, and positive thoughts!" wrote Melissa Merculief Landis, the mother of one of the missing teens, on her Facebook page overnight.
Forrest Merculief, 17, and his girlfriend, 17-year-old Lauren Mitchell are from the north Bothell and Mill Creek areas.
They were found around 10 p.m. Tuesday in Spokane, a relative told KIRO 7 Eyewitness News reporter Chris Legeros.
There was no immediate explanation for where they had been since they disappeared Sunday night.
On Monday, one of their parents emailed KIRO 7 Eyewitness News, desperate to find the teens. Nathaniel Landis said his stepson may have taken off with Mitchell after his girlfriend argued with her parents.
“It’s surreal, I guess. I guess I can’t wrap my mind around the fact that he is running away,” said Landis.
But the disappearance took an alarming turn Monday morning, when the boy's car was discovered in a ditch along Highway 2 between East Wenatchee and Coulee City.
Its front end was damaged, the windshield was smashed and glass littered the floor.
“I could see him trying to get away for a night or something. But running away like this and taking his car to Eastern Washington and leaving it for dead like that, not a chance,” said Landis.
Merculief's phone was turned off, so it couldn't be tracked with GPS, he hasn't called friends or relatives and he didn't pack a bag or take much money with him.
Both Merculief's mother and Mitchell’s father drove to Coulee City Tuesday, passed out fliers of the missing teens and started asking questions.
Mitch Mitchell said the teens were spotted at a store called Big Wally's, buying toiletries and asking about public transportation to Spokane.
“(They) explained that their vehicle had been hit by a deer and was un-drivable,” said Mitch Mitchell.
“I presumed at this point that they may have hitchhiked to Spokane,” said Landis.
The missing teens’ parents said because police said there’s no evidence of a crime, they cannot help with the search.
Mitch Mitchell said he drove by the place where Merculief’s Honda Civic was found and noticed a deer carcass, likely the animal that struck the car.
KIRO
