NY Teens in Good Condition After Year-Long Disappearance, Police Say
— -- Two teenage sisters reported as runaways last spring and then found in upstate New York this week are in good condition, New York State Police say.
KyLea Fortner, 16, and sister Shaeleen Fitch-Fortner, 14, were reported as runaways April 27, 2015, in Binghamton, New York, authorities said.
After an 11-month investigation, police found the girls Wednesday night at a house in Vestal, New York, less than 10 miles from Binghamton. They were turned over to Broome County Family Services.
Amanda Hellman, a 29-year-old woman who state police said is a family acquaintance of the victims, was arrested and charged Thursday with second-degree kidnapping, a Class B felony. Hellman is not related to the girls, according to a felony complaint.
Hellman allegedly abducted the girls near the Susquehanna Valley High/Middle School around April 27, 2015, according to the complaint. Then over the next 11 months, Hellman "conducted numerous acts to prevent law enforcement from returning the two children to their foster parents," the complaint said.
Hellman lived at the house where the teens were found, according to police.
Hellman was arraigned and remanded to the Broome County Jail without bail, police said.
She pleaded not guilty, said her attorney, Ronald Benjamin.
Benjamin declined to comment further.
The investigation is ongoing, police said.
