Missing girl, 4, found in secret room hidden under stairs years after being kidnapped

dailystar.co.uk:

went missing at the age of four has been found safe two years later – hidden in a secret room under a staircase at the home of her grandfather, who did not have legal custody.Paislee Shultis was reported missing from her home in Cayuga Heights, New York State, on July 13, 2019.

At the time, reports suggested that she may have been taken by her non-custodial parents Kimberly Cooper, and Kirk Shultis.At around 8pm on Monday, after receiving a tip-off that Paislee was being held a location in Saugerties – some 170 miles from where she went missing, police obtained a search warrant for the property.As the search began, the owner of the residence denied having any knowledge of Paislee’s whereabouts, telling officers that he hadn’t seen her since she was reported missing in 2019.

But after searching the house for an hour, Detective Erik Thiele noticed something off about a flight of stairs leading from the back of the house into the basement.After removing several of the wooden steps, says Saugerties Police Chief Joseph Sinagra, detectives spotted a pair of tiny feet.

They removed some more of the staircase, revealing Paislee and her mother Kimberly Cooper 33."Upon removing the step boards, the child and her abductor, Kimberly Cooper were found hiding in the dark and wet enclosure,” Chief Sinagra said in a statement.Paislee was checked over by paramedics from the Diaz ambulance crew, and found to be in good health.Stay in the loop with all the latest Daily Star news by signing up for one of our free newsletters here. Kimberly Cooper and her 32-year-old partner Kirk Shultis Jr.