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A North Carolina teen who was reported missing was rescued Thursday by authorities in Kentucky after the teen flashed a special hand signal to a passing driver.
The unidentified 16-year-old had been reported missing by her parents Tuesday, the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office said. Two days later, a motorist in Kentucky called 911 to report that a female had flashed a distressing hand signal.
“The complainant was behind the vehicle and noticed a female passenger in the vehicle making hand gestures that are known on the social media platform ‘Tik Tok’ to represent violence at home – I need help- domestic violence,” Laurel County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement posted to Facebook. “The complainant advised 911 that the female appeared to be in distress.”
The help signal is a one-handed gesture in which the victim will face their palm to the camera and tuck their thumb before trapping their thumb with their fingers, according to the Canadian Women’s Foundation. (RELATED: Human Remains Found In California Desert Identified As New Jersey Woman Who Went Missing After Staying With Friends)
The driver followed the vehicle for several miles until authorities managed to conduct a traffic stop on the vehicle shortly thereafter and learned the teen was actually missing from Asheville, North Carolina. The teen told authorities she and 61-year-old James Herbert Brick traveled through North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky and into Ohio. When Brick’s relatives realized the teen was a missing person, the duo fled the area, prompting the teen to begin “attempting to get motorists attention to call 911.”
Authorities later found a cellphone that allegedly had pictures of the teen in “a sexual manner.”
Brick was arrested and charged with unlawful imprisonment in the first degree and possession of matter sex performance by a minor over the age of 12, according to authorities.
The investigation remains ongoing.