4-year-old girl missing in Indiana believed to be in ‘extreme danger’

Plainfield Police Department

(PLAINFIELD, Ind.) — Police in Indiana are looking for a missing 4-year-old girl who reportedly wandered from her home nearly 24 hours ago and is believed to be in extreme danger.

Fiedwenya Fiefe was last seen around 1 p.m. Thursday after she left her home in the Legacy Farms neighborhood in Plainfield, 17 miles southwest of Indianapolis, authorities said.

Fiedwenya has autism and is nonverbal, so she may not be able to ask for help, Plainfield Deputy Chief Joe Aldridge told reporters Friday morning as the search entered its second day.

“She has a history of leaving the residence unattended but they generally find her quickly and get her back,” Aldridge said.

The state has issued a Silver Alert, alerting the public to missing and endangered adults or children, for Fiedwenya, which noted that she “is believed to be in extreme danger and may require medical assistance.”

Dozens of first responders are searching for Fiedwenya, primarily concentrating on her neighborhood as well as two nearby, Aldridge said.

The girl is drawn to water, and there are approximately 14 ponds in Legacy Farms and a nearby neighborhood that they are actively searching, he said. Drones, rescue canines, off-road vehicles, watercraft and sonar equipment are being used in the search, police said.

No foul play is suspected at this time, Aldridge said.

“The family, as you would imagine, is very devastated,” he said. “They are cooperating with our agency.”

Police have asked residents in the area to check their property for the missing child as well as any exterior home video. Fiedwenya was captured on a resident’s footage walking down her street Thursday shortly after the family reported her missing to police, Aldridge said.

Police described Fiedwenya as a Black girl who is 3 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 35 pounds. She was last seen wearing a long pink dress or nightgown, police said.

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