Two years ago, Dulce Maria Alavez vanished from Bridgeton City Park during a visit with her mother and younger brother.
Two years later, investigators have yet to locate the girl despite an extensive search and national visibility brought to the South Jersey case.
Dulce Maria Alavez Went Missing While Playing
Dulce Maria Alavez, then 5, vanished in September 2019 while at the 1,100-acre Bridgeton City Park as she played with her 3-year-old brother, Manuel. Dulce’s mother, Noema Alavez Perez, was in a car nearby and told police Manuel said she disappeared as they played near a storage building next to a playground.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children worked with investigators to produce an age-progression image of what Dulce may look like as a 7-year-old. The rendering was released Wednesday (Sept. 15), one day before the second anniversary of her puzzling disappearance.
Investigators continue to pursue all leads in the case, according to the joint statement by Cumberland County Prosecutor Jennifer Webb McCrae and Bridgeton police chief Michael Gaimari.
“We hold out hope that Dulce is alive (as we have no evidence of her demise) and want the public to know that this case will remain open until such time as we locate Dulce and determine those responsible for her disappearance,” the statement read.
Suspect
“Dulce may be in the company of a light-skinned, possibly Hispanic male who is 5’6” to 5’8” tall, thin build, no facial hair but has acne on his face,” the notice reads. “Dulce may have entered an unknown vehicle.”
“We do have some witnesses that saw a Hispanic male in the park in and around the playground that we have not identified,” Garrabrant said in August 2020. “We don’t know who that is. It’s very possible that it’s the offender.”
Investigators have also released a sketch of a potential witness to suspected abduction.
A $75,000 reward is being offered for information leading to a break in the case. Dulce has brown eyes and hair, and was about 3 feet 5 inches tall and weighed 40 pounds when she vanished, according to a missing poster released by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Anyone with info about Dulce Maria Alavez’s whereabouts should call Bridgeton police or the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office.
