(NewsNation) — The mother of a girl who returned home after disappearing in 2019 is asking people to stop speculating on her daughter’s case.
Jessicas Nuñez, mother of Alicia Navarro, posted a video on Facebook pleading with people to stop making social media videos about the case or reaching to contact Navarro.
“This is not a movie, this is our life,” she said. “There is an ongoing investigation and I am begging you to move on.”
Navarro disappeared in 2019 from her home in Glendale, Arizona. Then 14, the girl left a note saying she had run away and would return. The now 18-year-old Navarro was found in a small Montana town near the Canadian border in July.
The years Navarro has been gone have been agonizing for Nuñez, who never stopped searching for her daughter. She paid for a billboard ad in Mexico that featured a photo of her daughter for a year and bought 10 more ads in Las Vegas. She spoke at events and gave media interviews to raise awareness. She left flyers around Glendale — at salons, truck stops, parks.
Over the years, Nuñez had raised concerns that Navarro, who was diagnosed with autism, may have been lured away by someone she met online. Police have emphasized their efforts to afford privacy to Navarro even as investigations move forward.
There is an ongoing investigation into Navarro’s case, with authorities attempting to determine what happened during the years she was missing and how she traveled from Arizona to Montana.
While she thanked supporters, Nuñez pleaded with followers to refrain from their own speculation, noting that she experienced harassment and attacks from people following the case. Navarro and Nuñez have reportedly spoken since Navarro was found but have not been reunited in person.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.