Police said they had not gathered the information required for an alert before the 10-year-old girl was found hours later.
CANBY, Ore. — The safe recovery of a 10-year-old girl after her reported abduction from a Canby apartment has brought renewed attention to Oregon’s requirements for issuing an AMBER Alert after police said the case initially lacked information needed to activate one.
The girl was reported taken from a southeast Canby apartment early Wednesday after investigators said a man entered the residence, assaulted a 12-year-old child and left with the younger girl. Although police launched a multiagency search, no statewide AMBER Alert was issued. Canby police said during the search that authorities had not gathered the information required for an alert, without specifying which requirement had not been met.
Oregon’s AMBER Alert program requires several conditions to be satisfied before an alert is activated. Law enforcement must have reason to believe an abduction occurred, the missing person must be 17 or younger and officials must believe the child faces imminent danger of serious bodily harm or death. Authorities also need enough descriptive information about the victim and abduction for a public alert to assist in finding the child. Required information must also be entered into state and federal law enforcement systems.
Those requirements mean a reported child abduction does not automatically produce an AMBER Alert. The statewide system is designed to distribute information that members of the public can use to help locate a child, suspect or vehicle. Canby police did not say which information was unavailable in the early hours of Wednesday’s investigation or whether officials later determined that all of the state’s criteria had been met.
Officers were called to an apartment complex in southeast Canby at about 1:47 a.m. Police said investigators learned that a man had entered an apartment at about 1:39 a.m., assaulted a 12-year-old child and abducted the 10-year-old. The older child was taken to a hospital and remained under treatment Wednesday afternoon. Police said the children’s parents were cooperating with investigators.
During the search, officers interviewed family members, canvassed the neighborhood and worked to obtain surveillance video. Canby police received assistance from other local, state and federal agencies as investigators tried to identify the person responsible and determine where the child had been taken.
The search ended later Wednesday in Oregon City. The U.S. Marshals Service said its Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force and other agencies located Vince Edgar Chavez in the 500 block of Pleasant Avenue. The agency identified Chavez as the prime suspect in the kidnapping investigation. Authorities said he attempted to leave through the rear of the residence as officers entered and was arrested without further incident.
Officers found the 10-year-old restrained in a closet inside the residence, according to the Marshals Service. She was transported to a medical facility for treatment and evaluation. Authorities have not released details about the extent of her injuries or publicly explained what connection, if any, Chavez had to the child or her family.
The abduction also prompted precautions at Carus Elementary, where the girl is a student. The school had an increased police presence during Wednesday afternoon dismissal. The Canby School District said it was supporting students, employees and families affected by the incident.
The investigation remained active Thursday. Authorities had not publicly announced potential charges against Chavez or explained precisely why an AMBER Alert was not activated before the girl was located, leaving that decision among the unanswered questions surrounding the case.
Author note: Last updated October 29, 2026.