Lost Voices

Five-year-old Dulce Maria Alavez was last seen on the 16th of September, 2019, at the Bridgeton City Park Recreational Area, New Jersey, playing with her three-year-old brother on the swings. Just 30 yards away, their mother (Noema Alavez Perez) sat in her car, helping a family member with some homework.

A short while later, Noema’s son returned to her car crying because he couldn’t find his sister. Noema became panicked that her daughter had been abducted, and called 911. The next day, an Amber Alert was issued for Dulce Maria Alavez.

Over 100 police officers searched the park and surrounding areas thoroughly, but they found no sign or trace of her.

Dulce Maria Alavez has not been seen or heard from since the 16th of September 2019.

A month after Dulce had gone missing, a witness contacted the police with a description of a man they saw at the park on the day that Dulce went missing. The police did ask Dulce’s family if they had noticed anyone at the park that day who seemed out of place or who was acting unusual, but they hadn’t noticed anyone.

The man the witness described is said to be a Hispanic male with light skin, and between 5’6″ and 5’8″ tall. He was wearing a white t-shirt, blue jeans and a white baseball cap. He is thought to be between 30 and 35 years old, and the witness said that he was driving a red van. The man also reportedly had two young children with him, potentially to blend in with the crowd at the playpark more.

Although the sketch of the man was publicised and shown across the country, the police and FBI did not receive any new tips about the man or Dulce’s whereabouts.

In 2020, a false claim was sent to the Bridgeton Police Department that claimed Dulce had been found but was dead. This false claim spread all over social media and momentarily derailed the investigation.

As of 2022, Dulce Maria Alavez is still missing. In 2021, the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children posted two age-progressed photos of Dulce.

At the time of her disappearance, Dulce was 5 years old. She was around 3ft tall and weighed between 60 and 70lbs. She had brown eyes and black hair. On the day she went missing, she was wearing a yellow t-shirt with a koala on the front, white checkered pants that had flowers and butterflies on them and white sandals.

Do you know where Dulce Maria Alavez is?

Tags:

Unsolved, Missing, Missing Child, True Crime, Mystery, Disappearance, Disappeared, New Jersey, 2019, Dulce Maria Alavez, Strange, Kidnapping, Abduction