Authorities Find Missing California Girl, 10, With Man She Met on Social Media

Detectives located the girl hundreds of miles from home with a 27-year-old man she messaged on Discord and Roblox, authorities reported.

A Kern County Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle. Courtesy of Kern County Sheriff's Office

Kern County sheriff’s deputies in Central California located a missing 10-year-old girl this week who was allegedly abducted by a man she met on social media, the department announced April 16.

The girl was last seen by family members on April 12 at home, according to a police report. She was reported missing the next morning.

The sheriff’s office dispatched detectives to find the girl after deputies received information from her friends that indicated she had been kidnapped.

Detectives discovered that the girl met Matthew Macatuno Naval, 27, on social media and the two were communicating through Roblox, a gaming app, and Discord, a communications app favored by gamers, the sheriff’s office reported.

Investigators believed the girl and Naval were in Elk Grove, California, about 275 miles north of Kern County.

The sheriff’s office notified Elk Grove police, and on April 13, officers located Naval in his car with the missing girl at a strip mall near his home, the sheriff’s office reported.

The girl was taken into protective custody and released back to her family, officials said.

Naval was arrested and booked on charges of kidnapping and unlawful sexual conduct with a minor child. He was detained without bail at the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office jail and is awaiting extradition to Kern County, authorities said Wednesday.

“We would like to thank the communities of Kern and Elk Grove for their assistance in sharing the message to help locate the juvenile,” the Kern County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. “We would like to thank Elk Grove Police Department for their assistance in locating the juvenile and arresting Naval.”

Authorities also issued a reminder on the importance of internet safety.

“Parents, monitor all electronic usage and know who your children are communicating with,” the statement said.

“Many apps and games have messaging capabilities and present the same, if not more, risk as social media platforms.

“Media monitoring apps are great tools for those who may not know where to begin when monitoring electronic usage.”

Social media apps displayed on an iPad on Feb. 26, 2024. A study by the National Center for Missing or Exploited Children found that 59 percent of children involved in online enticement cases were 15 or younger.  Joe Raedle/Getty Images

According to a study released in 2024 by the National Center for Missing or Exploited Children, 59 percent of children involved in online enticement cases were 15 or younger, while 45 percent of all missing children were 15 or younger.

The five most common social media apps used to entice children were Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Discord, and TikTok, the study revealed.

Anyone with information about the case was encouraged to call the Kern County Sheriff’s Office at [phone].