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YEEHAW JUNCTION, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Deputies with the Osceola County Sheriff's Office spent most of Tuesday searching a large piece of land along Yeehaw Junction in the southern part of the county.
While the Sheriffs Office won't confirm who or what they are looking for, the Lee County Sheriff's Office confirms there are a couple of searches being done for 9-year-old Diana Alvarez. She was reported missing a week ago Sunday. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement issued an Amber Alert for the little girl last Thursday.
Investigators have named family friend, Jorge Guerrero-Torres, as a person of interest in Alvarez’s disappearance. Guerrero-Torres was arrested Friday, but there’s still no sign of the 9-year old. Right now, Guerrero-Torres is being held without bond on immigration charges.
Guerrero-Torres used to live with Alvarez’s family. According to his arrest affidavit, pings from his cellphone placed him near the child’s family’s Fort Myers area home at the time investigators believe she disappeared. Pings a few hours later placed Guerrero-Torres along Yeehaw Junction in Osceola County for a period of time a short time later, according to the same arrest affidavit.
Another concern for investigators is child pornography captured in December were also found on Guerrero-Torres’ phone, they say. Deputies say Guerrero-Torres claims to have nothing to do with Alvarez’s disappearance.
Detectives searched on horseback, ATVs and on foot until 3 p.m. Tuesday, when one deputy told reporters that the land was too wet to continue their efforts. That deputy also told FOX 35 that the FDLE and the Polk County Sheriffs Office was conducting another search about 15 miles away and that one of the tools being used was a cadaver dog.