The father of a 15-year-old California girl whose missing persons case made national headlines has been arrested and faces possible charges of child abduction, conspiracy and falsifying a police report.
On Friday, the Monterey Park Police Department announced Jeffery Chao was arrested following an “extensive investigation.”
Chao’s daughter, Alison, was reported missing July 16 after she left her father’s house on the 200 block of North Ynez Avenue.
A missing persons case was launched after she purportedly did not arrive at her aunt’s home in San Gabriel about 3 miles away.
That prompted a widespread, city-spanning search for the teenager, which included volunteers sweeping neighborhoods and handing out missing person flyers and multiple media appearances, statements and tearful pleas from her mother, Annie Chao.
Alison ultimately was found safe July 23 after she was found outside the gate of the local ABC-affiliated TV station in Glendale.
Since then, questions have emerged about the true nature of the teen’s disappearance.
Alison’s parents are divorced, which has led to speculation that her alleged disappearance was the product of a custody dispute. Annie Chao was awarded “sole physical custody” over Alison, in the interest of her mental health and well-being, according to Emily Robinson, an attorney who identified herself as Alison’s court-appointed counsel.
Videos posted on social media purportedly show police at the home of Jeffery Chao, urging Alison to come with them, with a distraught female voice in the background refusing. The video was allegedly filmed by Alison the day before she was reported missing.
In a statement released earlier this week, Robinson made note of several social media posts, which she called “misleading and inaccurate.”
“The posts are rife with misrepresentations and false statements and hindered the investigation into Alison’s whereabouts and efforts by her family and the police to ensure her safe return,” Robinson said.
After Alison was located safe, her mother released a statement in which she reiterated Robinson’s previous comments regarding the social media posts, which she said contained “uninformed opinions, speculation, and hurtful comments about me and my family.”
“There is a great deal of misinformation that has been posted online regarding Alison and my family by a small number of people,” Annie Chao said in the statement. “If you wish to help Alison, you will stop posting about this matter.”
She continued in her statement, describing her daughter as a “young girl,” adding that her feelings about her parents’ divorce were “understandably complicated.”
While details about the arrest of Jeffery Chao are limited, the charges laid out by police imply that investigators believe he may have played a role in Alison’s reported disappearance.
Police said the investigation was ongoing and there would be “no further comment at this time.”
Friday afternoon, an attorney representing Jeffery Chao released a statement in which he denied his client had any involvement in his daughter’s alleged disappearance, saying he was given the opportunity to see her for the first time since she was reported missing earlier that day but was arrested upon arriving at the Monterey Park Police Department.
“At this point in time, the District Attorney’s Office of the Alhambra Superior Court has not filed any formal charges,” the statement reads in part, adding that his client is expected to be arraigned Monday.
“Chao maintains his innocence and his unwavering love for his daughter,” the statement concludes.
While the investigation into Alison Chao’s disappearance, real or otherwise, remains active, anyone with information is asked to contact the Monterey Park Police Department via email or by calling 626-307-1444.
