The mother of an 11-year-old missing girl has been named a suspect in her disappearance.
The Cornelius Police Department (CPD) announced in a social media post on Tuesday that it continues to seek the whereabouts of Madalina Cojocari, who hasn’t been seen since November 2022, adding that the child’s mom is now a suspect.
CPD placed an image of the suspect next to the photo of her missing child, urging the public to provide any information that may help with its investigation.
Police did not release details to the public on what specifically led to the mother being named a suspect. NTD reached out to CPD for additional details but did not receive a response.
This marks the first time a suspect has been named in the case.
“This is a serious case of a child whose parents are clearly not telling us everything they know,” CPD Capt. Jennifer Thompson previously said in a December 2022 video statement.
Ms. Cojocari, along with her husband, Christopher Palmiter, were arrested after they waited three weeks to report the child missing. It is illegal for someone to fail to report a missing child to law enforcement, according to state law in North Carolina.
Ms. Cojocari was released in May after serving over a year in prison, reported Raleigh ABC station WTVD. Mr. Palmiter was sentenced to 30 months of supervised probation, the station added.
Young Girl Last Seen
Madalina was last seen on surveillance footage getting off her school bus in Cornelius, North Carolina, on Nov. 21, 2022.
The mother claimed that she last saw her daughter on the night of Nov. 23 that year when she went to bed, according to ABC News.
Ms. Cojocari said that she and her husband argued that night, according to an arrest sheet. The next day, Mr. Palmiter, who is Madalina’s stepfather, reportedly drove to his family’s home in Michigan.
The girl was not in her room when Ms. Cojocari checked on her the next day, according to her account to police.
Ms. Cojocari told police she waited until Mr. Palmiter returned home on Nov. 26 to ask if he knew where the girl was, according to authorities.
She later reported Madalina’s disappearance to the school on Dec. 15. It was the school that alerted authorities that she was missing, law enforcement said.
When police questioned Ms. Cojocari about why she waited so long to report the child missing, she claimed she was scared it would create a conflict with her husband.
Mr. Palmiter told police that he questioned his wife because he did not know where Madalina was, according to his own account.
“Chris stated he spoke with Diana several times about Madalina’s whereabouts over the next three weeks. Both stated they did not know where she was, but they did not contact the police to report Madalina missing,” according to police.
Mr. Palmiter later testified in court that he believed his wife was involved in the child’s disappearance.
Ms. Cojocari is originally from Moldova.
“I think Diana took her somewhere with maybe her Moldovan family. I don’t know. But I believe Diana’s tucked her away somewhere where she’s not going to be found,” he testified.
Capt. Thompson said police launched an extensive investigation, including visiting 245 homes and canvassing surveillance footage from businesses and neighborhoods.
“Investigators have developed and followed more than 250 leads, spanning state lines and across the globe,” the police captain said.
Law enforcement has continued to ask the public to keep sharing the girl’s image on social media amid its continued search for the missing child.
