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Melissa Wenzel has been through this hell before.
Last spring, her 16-year-old daughter Makaylamae repeatedly went missing from their Shirley home. She was a runaway and living very dangerously.
Wenzel and authorities were eventually able to track her down, and the mother made the difficult decision to place the teen at a group mental health home for children, located in Deer Park. On Wednesday, Jan. 24, she ran away from the facility and has been on the run ever since.
“The last time this was going on, she was being groomed for sex trafficking,” Wenzel, 39, told GreaterLongIsland.com. “She’s never been gone to this extent. She deals with schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder, and I’m especially worried because she’s off her meds.”
Wenzel is reluctant to publicize Makaylamae’s disappearance because she believes that it puts her daughter on the radar for “every creeper out there” to find her first and take advantage of the girl’s vulnerabilities. But she feels that she has no other recourse, so she’s putting up missing child posters in the city and posting liberally on social media about her daughter’s disappearance.
“I need her found now,” she said, growing more emotional. “It’s a race for me to beat the bad guys.”
Wenzel suspects Makaylamae is somewhere in Brooklyn. Or maybe Manhattan.
Wenzel’s experience is too often the kind of nightmare set upon countless loved ones of missing children across the country. In the United States, a child goes missing or is abducted every 40 seconds, according to FBI statistics, which counted 359,094 such cases in 2022.
On Long Island alone, there are 27 active missing children cases — including some that that back decades — as of Monday night, according to New York state’s Division of Criminal Justice Services.
Some, like Makaylamae, are runaways, while circumstances in other cases remain murky.
Long Island’s 27 Missing Child Cases
The New York State Missing Persons Clearinghouse has received permission from family members and legal guardians to publicize the cases of the individuals listed below. Anyone with information about these individuals can submit a tip or lead to the Clearinghouse by calling 1.800.346.3543.
Some of the individuals listed below have become adults since the time that they went missing.
MIKAYLA ABREU
Age: 16
Missing from: Stony Brook
Reported missing: May 11, 2023
Details: Authorities believe she travelled to Manhattan and is in the area of W. 45th Street. She has tattoos of hearts under her left eye.
OLIVER ACOSTA-VASQUEZ
Age: 5
Missing from: Centereach
Reported missing: April 28, 2022
Details: Authorities said it is believed that he is with his non-custodial father, Jose Acosta-Manueles, 35, and that they may have traveled to New Jersey, Michigan or Texas.
ROSA ARGUETA
Age: 16
Missing from: Central Islip
Reported missing: Jan. 6, 2024
Details: At the time she was reported missing, authorities said she may be in the local area.
YANIRA ARGUETA
Age: 19
Missing from: St. James
Reported missing: Oct. 19, 2021
Details: At the time she was reported missing, police said that Yanira speaks only Spanish and that she may have traveled to Oakland or San Fransisco, California.
ANGELINA ARIAS
Age: 16
Missing from: Bay Shore
Reported missing: Feb. 27, 2023
Details: Police at the time she was reported missing said she may have traveled to Wood Island, Massachusetts.
YEIMY AVILA
Age: 16
Missing from: Stony Brook
Reported missing: Jan. 5, 2024
Details: Authorities reported she was last seen wearing a black zip-up hooded sweatshirt, black and red striped pants, and carrying a camouflage backpack. She may travel to Nassau County, police said.
ALEX BERNATE
Age: 14
Missing from: Brentwood
Reported missing: July 21, 2023
Details: He was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, sweatpants and white sneakers, according to authorities.
KALVIN BLACK
Age: 17
Missing from: Riverhead
Reported missing: Jan. 14, 2024
Details: He was last seen wearing a black sweatshirt, blue jeans and black sneakers, authorities said. He has a tattoo on his left forearm, according to the missing persons report.
JEREMIAH FOREMAN
Age: 14
Missing from: Riverhead
Reported missing: Jan. 15, 2024
Details: He was last seen wearing a blue vest, blue sweatshirt and black sneakers, authorities said.
ANTHONY GOMEZ
Age: 16
Missing from: Riverhead
Reported missing: April 5, 2023
Details: Authorities reported at the time of Gomez’s disappearance that he was last seen wearing a dark grey jacket, black joggers and brown boots — and that he has tattoos on both arms. Anthony may have traveled to Manhattan, authorities said.
OSWALDO GUTIERREZ
Age: 21
Missing from: Wyandanch
Reported missing: Feb. 13, 2022
Details: At the time he was reported missing, authorities said that he was last seen wearing all black clothing and that he is believed to be in the local area.
IMANI HARRIS
Age: 14
Missing from: Bay Shore
Reported missing: Dec. 21, 2023
Details: She is believed to be in the local area, it was reported earlier by authorities.
DAILYN LARA-MORATAYA
Age: 20
Missing from: Copiague
Reported missing: July 15, 2022
Details: Authorities have said she may have traveled to Mexico.
YIMY LAZO REYES
Age: 18
Missing from: Brentwood
Reported missing: Nov. 19, 2023
Details: Authorities reported that Yimy has a tattoo on his right forearm of a dagger going through three hearts and a tattoo with the word “Love” on his right hand.
GENESIS MARTINEZ-CLAROS
Age: 16
Missing from: Amityville
Reported missing: March 29, 2023
Details: Authorities noted that she may have traveled to Nassau County.
ANDRES MENDEZ-RIVAS
Age: 18
Missing from: Centereach
Reported missing: Dec. 11, 2021
Details: Authorities at the time Andres was reported missing noted that he is believed to have traveled to the Fairmont Park area of Norfolk, Virginia, and that he may be with a male relative.
KELLY MORRISSEY
Age: 55
Missing from: Lynbrook
Reported missing: June 13, 1984
Details: Foul play is suspected in Kelly’s disappearance nearly 40 years ago, authorities said. She has pierced ears and a one-inch scar on her forehead, according to the missing persons report about her. The photo above and on right is age progressed to what she may look like at 49 years old.
SANTA ELODIN LEON PEREZ
Age: 18
Missing from: Wyandanch
Reported missing: June 6, 2020
Details: Her missing persons report indicates that she is believed to be with her father and that she may have traveled to New York City or Maryland.
GLORIA MARINA PEREZ HERNANDEZ
Age: 17
Missing from: Brentwood
Reported missing: Dec. 17, 2023
Details: The photo above is the best image available from authorities. She is missing her left eye and may wear glasses, authorities noted.
HILLARY ROSARIO
Age: 18
Missing from: Bay Shore
Reported missing: Aug. 2, 2023
Details: At the time she was reported missing last summer, authorities said that she was last seen wearing white sweatpants; a dark grey sweater over a light grey T-shirt; and pink, white and black sneakers
CATARINA SEBASTIAN-MATIAS
Age: 20
Missing from: Amityville
Reported missing: Nov. 13, 2020
Details: She may have travel to North Carolina or Memphis, Tennessee, authorities said. Additionally, Catarina may use the last name “Reyes.”
ANGELINA SMITH
Age: 16
Missing from: Dix Hills
Reported missing: Dec. 7, 2023
Details: Authorities said she was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and black sweatpants, and carrying a black backpack.
BRITTANY VILLATORO
Age: 17
Missing from: Stony Brook
Reported missing: May 5, 2023
Details: Police noted she is believed to be with a female companion and she may have traveled to Rochester.
MAKAYLAMAE VINCENT
Age: 16
Missing from: Deer Park
Reported missing: Jan. 24, 2024
Details: Authorities reported that the Shirley resident was last seen wearing a grey sweatshirt and grey leggings and that she may have traveled to Brooklyn or Manhattan. Additionally, she is coping with multiple medical conditions, according to the missing persons report about her.
TIFFANY S. WESTFORD
Age: 32
Missing from: Amityville
Reported missing: Nov. 13, 1993
Details: The following information is contained in Tiffany’s missing persons report: “Tiffany has a scar on her hand, her elbow and a 2″-3″ scar just below her navel. She also has pierced ears. Tiffany is believed to be with her non-custodial mother, Marie Catherine Dominique.” The photo above on the right is age-progressed to what she may look like at 27 years old. Tiffany was 2 years old when she was first reported missing. Tiffany and her non-custodial mother may go by alias last names Altidor, Sanon or Noel, authorities noted.
SPENCER WILLAM
Age: 16
Missing from: West Babylon
Reported missing: Sept. 6, 2023
Details: Authorities noted that he may have traveled to Chinatown in Manhattan.
SOMERLY YNOA
Age: 15
Missing from: Brightwaters
Reported missing: Oct. 5, 2023
Details: Authorities only noted that Ynoa “may be in the local area.”
Photos source: New York state Division of Justice Criminal Services
The Missing Persons Clearinghouse provides assistance to law enforcement agencies handling cases involving children, college students and vulnerable adults who have gone missing.
Clearinghouse staff members carry experience in law enforcement, training and information technology, and they provide investigative support services to local, state and national law enforcement. They also give assistance to left-behind family members and community education programs.
