Kiely Rodni: Everything we know about 16-year-old who vanished from camp party in California
A desperate search is underway for 16-year-old Kiely Rodni, who vanished from a party at a northern California campground on 5 August.
Kiely was last seen around 12.30am on Saturday near the Prosser Family Campground in Truckee, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office said.
She is described as white, 5’7” tall, and 115 pounds with blonde hair and hazel eyes. She has numerous piercings and jewelry, including a nose ring, and was last seen wearing green Dickies pants and a black tank top.
Authorities have launched several search efforts, but no leads have emerged that could possibly indicate what happened to Kiely after the party.
Police has asked anyone with information to reach out to Detective Stephanie Frykberg at (530) 392-5609 or call the anonymous tip line at (530) 581-6320.
Here’s what we know so far about Kiely’s disappearance:
Kiley was last seen at a bonfire party
The party at Prosser Family Campground in Truckee had more than 100 teenagers and young adults in attendance, police said.
They suspect that underage drinking took place. The Placer County Sheriff’s Office said they’re not looking to charge teenagers who consumed alcohol at the party and have pleaded with them to come forward with any information that could help find Kiely.
Kiely arrived at the party around 9.45pm on Friday, her friend, Samantha Smith, told The Independent on Monday. Kiely called her around 12.36am, that was the last time that she made a call, Samantha said.
She was then seen wandering around the party before she vanished. Police confirmed to The Independent that Kiely’sphone was turned off shortly after midnight.
The teenager was supposed to meet friends at 9am on Saturday to go on a hike but failed to show up.
Police ask for the public’s help
Kiely’s disappearance is being investigated by authorities as a possible abduction case because her car went missing along with the teenager. She was driving a silver 2013 Honda CRV. Her phone has also been out of service since Saturday.
“We’re treating this as an abduction case because we cannot locate her vehicle, and that’s the only reason why,” Placer Sheriff’s Office public information officer Angela Musallam told The Independent.
‘She was in no state to drive’
Kiely’s friend, Samantha, who was also at the party, said that Kiely was not planning to drive back home.
“Right now we believe that is an abduction case, because she was in no state to drive and she wouldn’t have made it far or would have crashed,” she told The Independent on Monday.
Family pleads for help
Kiely’s mother, Lindsay Rodni, appealed to the public to come forward in a video shared on a Placer County Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook post.
“We just want her home. We are so scared. We miss her so much and love her so much. If you see this, please just come home. I want nothing more than to hug you,” Ms Rodni said.
“If you know where she is or know anything about where she might be, please come forward. We’re not looking to arrest anybody or get anybody in trouble we just want to see our daughter home.”
Police are offering a $50,000 reward for information that leads to finding Kiely. Friends of the teenager have also started a GoFundMe to increase the reward. More than $6,000 has been raised as of midday Monday.
