Search teams looking for missing Phoenix teen Jessica Holtzinger
PHOENIX - Thirteen-year-old Jessica Holtzinger has been missing for 20 days as of Sunday and her father, teachers and community members are combing the entire Valley searching for her.
She went missing on June 18 just after midnight from the area of 27th and Roosevelt streets in Phoenix. She was last seen wearing a gray T-shirt, blue shorts and pink and white Nike Air Force 1 shoes.
A missing persons flyer for the teen says she might think she's in trouble at home, but that she is loved, and her family wants her home safe. There are concerns about her safety and that she may be in danger.
Chris Castorena, CEO of Arizona Private Investigation Services, LLC, is leading the charge to find her.
"Jessica accidentally set something on fire at her next door neighbors' house. She believes she's in trouble. She's not," Castorena said during a search on July 7. "Just come home. Talk to your dad, call him. He misses you very much."
Groups of volunteers made up of family, community members and her teachers are searching in zones.
"Public awareness is key to find people," Castorena said.
Jessica Holtzinger
‘Every day it just gets worse and worse’
"My 13-year-old daughter, Jessica Holtzinger, has been missing for 20 days," the missing teen's father, David Holtzinger, said with tears in his eyes.
She apparently thought she had put her family's living situation in jeopardy because of the fire.
"She thought her family was going to get evicted and to keep her family from getting in trouble, she thought, 'I'm going to leave,'" Rhonda Dequier, founder of Missing in America Network, said.
It was an accident.
Jessica caught the neighbors' umbrella on fire. It was put out quickly and nobody was hurt, but management threatened eviction, causing Jessica to run.
"It tears me up honestly that she would feel that she had to do something so drastic. I want her to come home safe. I hope she's OK," her father said.
It's been weeks with no signs of Jessica.
"I'm worried about her, and I'm scared for her," Tina Hansen, Jessica’s teacher, said.
Castorena says the 13-year-old girl is in a vulnerable situation.
"It’s a very bad situation for her because of her age, and she's out here by herself," he said. "We're hoping to find her fast."
Time is of the essence.
"She'd be back the next day, and she hasn't been," Hansen said. "Every day it just gets worse and worse."
Anyone with information on Holtzinger's whereabouts can call Castorena at 602-529-3303 or the Phoenix Police Department at 602-262-6151.