SAN ANTONIO (NewsNation Now) — Texas officials are still searching for Lina Sardar Khil, a 3-year-old girl from Afghanistan, who vanished just days before Christmas at a playground.
Lina has been missing for more than a week. San Antonio police Chief William McManus said despite having no new leads in the case, his officers and FBI agents remain laser-focused on Lina’s disappearance.
“It’s disheartening that we haven’t found anything that leads us closer to Lina,” McManus said Tuesday. “There’s nothing we haven’t done to try to find her.”
He added investigators are “looking at some people,” but did not provide any specifics.
The girl was last seen Dec. 20 at a playground inside an apartment complex between 4 and 5 p.m. According to the police, she was with other kids when her mother left and came back to find her daughter missing. Police are not sure if Lina wandered away or if she was taken by someone.
The SAPD has gone door-to-door at the complex and used K-9s around the complex to help to find any leads. The FBI has also joined in on the search. After combing through surveillance video from the complex, federal investigators are now honed in on a time between 4:49 p.m. and 5:07 p.m. where they don’t have visibility of Lina from cameras or other sources.
“So we have a gap right now, and I mentioned it last week,” McManus said.
The FBI is now asking for tips that could help them piece together Lina’s movements and possible interactions Dec. 20. The Islamic Center of San Antonio and Crime Stoppers is offering $150,000 for any information that would help authorities locate Lina.
At a prayer vigil for Lina, MaManus asked the community for help in the disappearance, even from those wishing to remain anonymous.
“We are not going to come looking for you, and question you, or intimidate you,” McManus said. “If you have information, that’s all we want.”
McManus confirmed police are still treating this as a missing person case and not an abduction “unless evidence leads us otherwise.”
Former FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer said that although the police say they aren’t treating this as an abduction case, their actions are saying otherwise.
“The actions [that are being] taken (are) as if she were abducted, said Coffindaffer, who appeared on NewsNation Prime on Tuesday. “There is an Amber Alert that’s been issued. The FBI card team is there. They are looking with all resources available for her. So this is certainly being treated as an abducted child case … whether the verbiage is there or not.”
Coffindaffer also said the big reward for information regarding Lina’s disappearance could also motivate someone who has information.
“The reason is while there are so many people out there that want to help because they’re just good people, some people need more motivation and that can be money. So, somebody might call in with a very important tip strictly because of this huge reward.”
Watch the rest of Coffindaffer’s interview on NewsNation Prime in the video player below.
Lina is 4 feet tall and weighs 55 pounds. She was last seen wearing a red dress, black jacket and black shoes. Her hair was in a straight back shoulder-length ponytail at the time of her disappearance.
Anyone with any information is encouraged to contact SAPD at 210-207-7660.
NewsNation affiliate KXAN also contributed to this report.
