New Details About Missing Teen Savannah Lee Pruitt — And Why Her Adoptive Father Was Charged With Rape After She Was Found Safe
She was found safe in a different state.
Monroe County Sheriff's Office A 14-year-old Tennessee teen who was missing for over two weeks was found safe in Wisconsin. Her adoptive father, Randall Pruitt, was arrested and charged with rape.
Savannah Leigh Pruitt was located Thursday night around 8 p.m. in a Wisconsin residence. Authorities have released few details about the case as it is an ongoing investigation.
"I can tell you that Savannah has been located. She has been located safely in Wisconsin," Monroe County Sheriff Tommy Jones said at a news conference Thursday night. "We are making arrangements at this current time to get her home."
Jones could not reveal who Savannah was with when she was found, but did say authorities do not believe she had any relation to the person living at the Wisconsin residence.
Monroe County Sheriff's Office
"She's in good health. She's safe, she's warm, she's been fed," Jones said of Savannah. "It was a good turn out."
The sheriff said he believes Savannah left on her own accord as an attempt to get out of a bad home situation. He also confirmed her adoptive father was arrested at a gas station in Kentucky Wednesday night and charged with rape.
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“Savannah would be the victim in that,” Jones said.
Jones said that Pruitt's arrest is part of the same investigation as that of his daughter's disappearance but did not say how.
"We don't believe at this time that he has any connections to her being a runaway or missing," Jones said.
Monroe County Sheriff's Office
“There’s a possibility of multiple charges with multiple people being involved. That’s all we can say at this time," he said. Jones did not mention any other names.
Savannah disappeared on Jan. 13 from her Madisonville home, where she was last seen by her mother and adoptive dad. Her bedroom window was open and some of her clothes were missing.
It was originally believed that she did not run away, according to Monroe County Sheriff’s Office detective Jason Fillyaw, ABC News reported.
Authorities said the teen's two cell phones were pinged in Corbin, a Kentucky town about 140 miles from her Tennessee home, the next morning. Then, her phones went dark. An intense search that included four states ensued for more than two weeks until she was located in Wisconsin.
Pruitt had previously joined Savannah's mother, Christina Pruitt, in pleaded for her to return home, according to WATE.
“It’s like having your soul ripped out of your body,” he said. “You can’t think, you can’t eat, you can’t sleep, you can’t rest — life has just ceased for us since she left.”
Pruitt is being held without bond at Monroe County Jail. He is scheduled to appear in court Thursday.
Sarah Gangraw writes about all things news, entertainment and crime. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.