A TikTok video from Mexico gave Washington police a possible lead in a nearly 2-decade old kidnapping case
Police in Kennewick, Washington, said they're investigating a new lead in a kidnapping case from 2003 after they were alerted of a viral TikTok video.
Sofia Juarez went missing 18 years ago when she was kidnapped outside her home on February 4, 2003. She was kidnapped just one day before her 5th birthday.
In the viral video, filmed in Culiacan Sinaloa in northwest Mexico in March, a woman was interviewed by a man in Spanish. In the one-minute clip, the woman says she's 22 years old and claims she may have been kidnapped. She calls out to her family and says they should find her if they're watching because she isn't sure where she is from, according to NBC News.
"We are aware of the TikTok video," the Kennewick police said in a statement. "Investigation is being conducted into that. Thank you to those who sent information on that video to us. It is appreciated."
The TikTok user who interviewed the woman and posted the video has cooperated with police, authorities said, according to the report.
In a May 5 update to the case, Kennewick police said officers had a new lead regarding a "highly credible witness" who, according to NBC News, at the time, saw a girl matching Juarez' description, crying, and being led into a light blue, silver, or grey van from the 70s or 80s by another person.
"Police have a detailed description of that person, but are withholding it at this time for investigative purposes," authorities said in the May 5 statement.
Over the past month, more than 75 people have called or left tips in the cold case, police said.
Aaron Clem, a spokesperson for the Kennewick police told NBC that their "ultimate goal" was to have the woman identified and to have her provide a voluntary DNA sample.
"There is enough there that we need to do our due diligence," Clem said.
According to CNN, Juarez' mother died in 2009 but police have remained in contact with other members of her family.