A 15-year-old girl is missing in Lancaster, South Carolina, after she was last seen around 2 a.m. Tuesday in the West Meeting Street area, and police are asking the public for help finding her. Abegail Grace Murray is described as roughly 5 feet 6 inches tall and about 160 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. Investigators have not released information about what she was wearing or where she may have been headed.
The Lancaster Police Department made the appeal in a Facebook post early Wednesday, asking anyone with information to come forward. According to Lancaster PD, both Murray's destination and her clothing at the time she went missing remain unknown. Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or reach the department directly at 803-283-3313.
West Meeting Street is one of Lancaster's busiest corridors, running through the heart of the city and connecting residential neighborhoods to commercial and medical centers, including MUSC Health Lancaster Medical Center at 800 West Meeting Street, according to MUSC Health. The area's steady overnight traffic and proximity to major community destinations make it a focal point for investigators piecing together Murray's movements before she disappeared.
Where to Report Tips
Beyond the police department's main line, residents can also submit anonymous tips through the department's dedicated crime tip hotline at 803-289-6040, per the City of Lancaster, which lists Don Roper as the department's chief and headquarters it at 405 East Arch Street. Tipsters who prefer to stay anonymous online can also submit leads confidentially through P3 Tips at p3tips.com/983 or via its mobile app, a reporting option the department has used for other active investigations.
Murray's case is one of hundreds the state is currently tracking. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division operates the Missing Person Information Center, a statewide database that typically holds between 700 and 800 active missing person cases at any given time, according to SLED. If a missing person remains unaccounted for 30 days after a report is filed, state law allows SLED to conduct DNA identification testing on family-submitted samples for entry into the federal CODIS database, under South Carolina Code Section 23-3-625.
No Waiting Period Required to Report a Missing Child
South Carolina law also makes clear that police departments cannot enforce any waiting period before accepting and investigating a missing child report, according to the South Carolina Legislature. That standard is meant to counter a persistent public misconception that families must wait 24 hours before filing a report, a delay that can cost investigators critical time in the early hours of a disappearance. Lancaster, the county seat of Lancaster County and part of the Charlotte metro region, has an estimated population of just under 9,834 residents, per data compiled by World Population Review.
For cases involving a credible safety threat, South Carolina's Endangered Person Notification System can trigger statewide alerts through wireless emergency notifications, SLED advisories, media outreach, and Department of Transportation message signs, a tool distinct from an AMBER Alert, which requires evidence of an abduction. Nationally, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children says it assisted law enforcement with 32,167 missing children cases in 2025, with 90 percent of those children recovered safely. The organization has also flagged a steep rise in online enticement reports, which surged 158 percent between 2024 and 2025 to more than 1.4 million cases nationwide, underscoring the digital risks investigators now weigh alongside traditional runaway and endangerment scenarios.
Lancaster Police issued a similar public alert earlier this year for a different missing juvenile, a case Hoodline covered back in January. No additional details about Murray's disappearance, including a possible motive or destination, have been released, and the investigation remains active. Anyone with information is urged to contact police immediately.
