2 children, missing almost a year, found 1,000 miles away after 'routine' police tag check

HIGH SPRINGS, Fla. (TND) — Two children who were kidnapped in Missouri almost a year ago have been found safe in Florida.

Police in High Springs, near Gainesville, said it happened Wednesday, after a "routine vehicle tag check" indicated the vehicle's owner — the children's non-custodial mother— was a fugitive.

Officers found her and the children shopping at a Winn Dixie grocery store. They had disguised their identities.

Authorities detainedKristi Nicole Gilley, 36, and thenarrested her on an active kidnapping warrant out of Clay County, Mo., just north of Kansas City.

Brooke Gilley, 11, and her 12-year-old brother Adrian Gilley had been missing for almost a year, since March 15, 2022.

Police said theywere turned over to the Florida Department of Children and Families Services, and will be reunited with their family.