Five-year-old girl snatched from her bed in Alice Springs, police believe

A five-year-old girl has been abducted from her bed in Alice Springs late on Saturday night, police believe.

Investigators are also hunting for a recently-released prisoner with a history of domestic violence convictions, who they believe can assist with the search.

The girl, known as Sharon, was last seen by her parents when they put her to bed at about 11.30pm on Anzac Day inside her home on Marshall Court in the Old Timers Camp Aboriginal community. The community is about five kilometres south of the Alice Springs town centre.

“It’s a terrible situation to have such a young child go missing,” said Northern Territory Police Acting Commander Mark Grieve. “We’re over 24 hours now, so it’d certainly be my worst nightmare as a parent, we’re wrapping [our arms] around the mother.”

Sharon, who was reported missing by her family at about 1.30am on Sunday, was last seen wearing a dark blue short-sleeve t-shirt with white cuffs and neckline, and a pair of black boxer-style underwear. The door was open and its fly screen was unlocked when she went missing.

Grieve said 47-year-old Jefferson Lewis, a recently-released prisoner, was likely “in and around the house” at Old Timers Camp at the same time as Sharon.

“He’s the only person who we haven’t been able to locate and speak to who was in and around that area at the time, considering himself and Sharon went missing at around about the same time, it certainly brings about those suspicious circumstances,” he said.

Grieve said Lewis had a history of assault and domestic violence charges. Lewis is not directly related to Sharon, but there may be a “peripheral link,” Grieve said.

Police have searched the area with volunteers and officers using horses, the canine unit, ATVs and drones.

“We’re doing everything within our power to [Lewis],” said Grieve.

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