Tipster Helped Locate Missing Crown Heights Teen In Harlem: Report

BROOKLYN, NY — A good Samaritan alerted police that a missing Crown Heights teenager was in Harlem, helping to get the girl safely home after a week-long search effort, according to a report.

"She was staying in an apartment" in Harlem, a law enforcement source told PIX11 News. "Someone called the police."

Aunisty Elliot, 14, went missing from her Prospect Place home on the morning of July 27, police said.

After a neighborhood-wide search effort and national media coverage, Elliot was found Thursday — over a week after she went missing, the NYPD confirmed.

Elliot's mother, who didn't share with PIX11 why her daughter left but confirmed that she's home, thanked neighbors for helping with the search effort.

"I want to thank the entire community, all around the world, for all their love, hope, faith and prayers," the mother told the outlet.

Brooklyn Councilmember Crystal Hudson, who spearheaded the local search efforts, also thanked community members for their efforts to help find Elliot.

Hudson told Patch she felt compelled to act because of staggering statistics that a disproportionate number of Black women are reported missing in the U.S. every year and Black children are more likely to go missing for longer.

"When Black girls are missing, no one is bothered and nothing stops," Hudson said. "The odds were stacked against Aunisty and her family."

In the wake of her return, though, the Councilwoman said she can breathe a sigh of relief.

"[It's] relief and joy that I feel."

Related Article: Missing Crown Heights Teen Found After Week-Long Search, NYPD Says