PHILADELPHIA _ Police have issued an Amber Alert for Dulce Maria Alavez, indicating they believe the 5-year-old girl was abducted by a man in a red van.
Bridgeton Police Chief Michael Gaimari said the alert was issued late Tuesday, more than 24 hours after Dulce was reported missing, after interviewing and re-interviewing people who were in Bridgeton City Park near the ball fields where the girl's mother last saw her about 4:20 p.m. Monday.
The Amber Alert says the girl may have been taken by a possibly Hispanic man with light skin, who was described as 5-feet, 6-inches to 5-feet, 8-inches tall and having a thin build, no facial hair, and acne on his face. He was wearing orange sneakers, red pants, and a black shirt.
Officials said they are looking for a red van with a sliding door on the passenger side and tinted windows into which the man led the girl believed to be Dulce.
The FBI is assisting in the investigation.
Officials said the girl went to the park in a car with her mother, 3-year-old brother, and 8-year-old aunt after buying ice cream at a store.
Noema Alavez Perez, the girl's mother, has said Dulce and her brother went to playground while she and the 8-year-old girl remained in the car about 30 yards away.
A short time later, the little boy ran back, crying and pointing to some park buildings, Alavez Perez said.
Gaimari said investigators launched simultaneous investigations after the child was reported missing with officers focused on searching for the child while also conducting a criminal investigation into her disappearance.
Alavez Perez told NJ.com that the girl's father is in Mexico but still has family in Bridgeton.
Dozens of law enforcement officials backed by a State Police helicopter searched the park and its waterways Monday night and all day Tuesday after daylight.
Gaimari said some searchers remained at the park Tuesday night even after the Amber Alert was issued.
During the search Tuesday, an ice cream vendor played his truck's jingle in the hopes it would catch the girl's attention and give her direction to follow.
Anyone with information can call 911 or Bridgeton police at 856-451-0033.
