FBI releases video of missing North Carolina 11-year-old Madalina Cojocari getting off school bus
The FBI released video showing sixth-grader Madalina Cojocari getting off the school bus on Nov. 21, 2022, at 4:59 p.m. in Cornelius, North Carolina.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – North Carolina police are urging people to continue sharing photos of missing 11-year-old Madalina Cojocari's face.
In December, authorities arrested and charged the 11-year-old's parents, Diana Cojocari and Christopher Palmiter, with failure to report a missing child to law enforcement after Madalina's disappearance from her hometown in Cornelius, which is just north of Charlotte, around Nov. 23, 2022.
"Thank you for continuing to spread information on social media to help us #FindMadalina," The Cornelius Police Department (CPD) said in a Thursday Facebook post. "We still need your assistance in continuing to flood the area with her precious face."
CPD, along with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) and FBI continue to search for the missing girl.
Madalina Cojocari of Cornelius, North Carolina, was last seen around Nov. 23. (Cornelius Police Department)
Madalina's disappearance wasn't made known to police until Dec. 15, when Cojocari told school officials and local police that she had last seen her daughter go to her bedroom the night of Nov. 23 around 10 p.m. after she and Palmiter got into an argument, court documents state.
Madalina's disappearance wasn't made known to police until Dec. 15, when Cojocari told school officials and local police that she had last seen her daughter go to her bedroom the night of Nov. 23 around 10 p.m. after she and Palmiter got into an argument. (Cornelius Police Department)
On Nov. 24, Palmiter drove to his relatives' home in Michigan "to recover some items." Cojocari went into her daughter's room around 11:30 a.m. that morning to discover that the 11-year-old was gone. She waited three days, until Nov. 26, when her husband returned home to Cornelius, to ask whether he knew where Madalina was. Palmiter apparently asked her the same question in return, according to an affidavit.
When detectives asked Cojocari why she waited until Dec. 15 to report her daughter missing, the mother said "she was worried it might start a 'conflict' between her" and Palmiter.
In December, authorities arrested and charged the 11-year-old's parents, Diana Cojocari and Christopher Palmiter, with failure to report a missing child to law enforcement after Madalina's disappearance from her hometown in Cornelius, which is just north of Charlotte, around Nov. 23, 2022. (Mecklenburg County Detention Center)
Security camera footage from a Cornelius school bus shows the 11-year-old girl exiting the bus Nov. 21 — the last day Madanalina, a 6th grader, showed up for class at Bailey Middle School — around 5 p.m.
Earlier this month, CPD asked the public for "firsthand eyewitness information from anyone" who may have spotted a light green "Toyota Prius or white female in the Madison County area between" Nov. 22 and Dec. 15. Madison County is a rural area near Asheville situated in the Appalachian Mountains.
Images released Friday by the Cornelius Police Department in the search for Madalina Cojocari. (Cornelius Police Department )
While CPD told Fox News Digital that it does "not have any additional information to add" about the case, the department is encouraging "the public to continue to share her picture" and "looking for anyone who may have firsthand information on her whereabouts."
Madalina's family penned a handwritten note expressing their concern for the missing 11-year-old, which the CPD shared with the public Dec. 22.
"Madalina is a beautiful, smart, kind and loving 11-year-old girl with greatness in her future," the family wrote. "We are desperate to find her right now, she needs all of our help."
Investigators on Thursday shared a handwritten, personal message from the family of Madalina Cojocari. (FBI Charlotte / Cornelius Police Department)
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The search for Madalina remains active and ongoing. The FBI is assisting the CPD with its search.
Authorities are asking anyone with information about Madalina's whereabouts to contact the CPD at 704-892-7773.
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