Updated Monday, Feb. 12 at 1:46 p.m.
The family of a vulnerable woman who went missing says she has been found safe at a city shelter. 40-year-old Katie Vaclaw disappeared from the Cox Business Center downtown on Friday.
"Still working with police to get info and access," sister Stacy Lard Vaclaw wrote via text.
Lard Vaclaw says Katie has Prader-Willi syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that makes her feel constantly hungry.
“So when she can get an opportunity to go get food, that’s exciting for her. So she runs. We just took the time to put air tags in every single pair of her shoes, except for the ones she was wearing that night because they went with her formal dress,” said Lard Vaclaw.
Katie was attending a dance called Night to Shine when, according to police, witnesses say she didn’t come back from the restroom. Night to Shine has been running for nine years and is tailored to those with special needs.
While Katie has gone missing before, Lard Vaclaw says every situation has been different. Sometimes she’s been located at a restaurant within hours, but other times have been more complicated.
“She’s 40 but she looks like she’s about 14, and she has the maturity of about a ten-year-old. She convinced this lady that she was a little kid whose parents left her, and she stayed with this lady for like two weeks, and this lady just fed her all sorts of food until she figured out she wasn’t maybe who she said she was,” said Lard Vaclaw.
A Kasey Alert was issued for Katie around 11:30 a.m. Monday.
