CONWAY, Ark. (WFLA) — A 15-year-old girl found in Tampa was reunited with her family months after she disappeared from her home in Arkansas.
According to police in Conway, Arkansas, 15-year-old Tanvi Marupally was found at a Tampa library Wednesday after a Bay area resident recognized her from the list of National Missing and Exploited Children.
“Today is a good day,” said Conway Police Chief William Tapley as he was met with a roar of cheers from the audience. “Tanvi Marupally is at home, safe and sound with her family as she should be.”
The police chief of the town of roughly 65,000 people, said Marupally left school on Jan. 17, 2023, however, instead of taking the bus home, she walked north until coming across a set of railroad tracks, which she followed for several more hours throughout the night.
“She continued walking the next day until she found a train which she could board,” Tapley said. “She boarded that train and eventually made her way to Kansas City. After several days, she arrived in Kansas City on approximately Jan. 22.”
There, Marupally checked into a homeless shelter under a false identity where she remained for two months.
“Two months, that she spent in Kansas City by herself,” Tapley added. “After that two-month period, she decided she was going to move.”
Marupally then took a bus to Tampa where she found an abandoned building to stay in.
“Tanvi’s love for the library is ultimately what led to her discovery,” Tapley said. “She found a local library where she was researching jobs that she could do for cash off of Craig’s List. Fortunately, there was a Tampa area citizen that recognized that there was an individual in the library that matched the description of Tanvi.”
That person forwarded the information to local authorities, who attempted to verify the tip.
“Ultimately in a case of sheer luck, when the police department went to check to see video footage from the library, Tanvi had returned.”
Marupally was taken to the Tampa Police Department where her identity was verified. She was later delivered to her parents with help from the U.S. Marshals Service.
When asked why Marupally decided to run away, Tapley said “we believe that it was due to the stress involved from information that she believed the family might end up being deported. Based on that, she felt it was best for her to leave.”
“If it had not been for that individual,” Tapley said, “Tanvi would not be home today.”
Earlier this month, the Conway community hosted a celebration for the teen, who turned 15 while still away from her family.
