A 35-year-old Alexandria woman vanished from her home over the weekend under circumstances investigators describe as a possible abduction, triggering a statewide alert and an urgent search by Fairfax County police. Idalia Esmeralda Rodriguez Ascencio was last seen around 3:30 p.m. Saturday at her residence in the 7000 block of Groveton Gardens Road, and police say she could be in danger.
Fairfax County police are searching for Rodriguez Ascencio and believe she may be with 41-year-old Carlos Gonzalez Castellon, according to WJLA. Rodriguez Ascencio is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall and about 200 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, and she may have been wearing a dark blue Adidas jacket, blue leggings and blue Crocs when she disappeared.
Gonzalez Castellon is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall and about 160 pounds, also with black hair and brown eyes. Investigators have not released information on what he may have been wearing or how the pair might be traveling, according to the same report.
Statewide Alert Issued Sunday Morning
Virginia State Police issued a critically missing adult alert on behalf of Fairfax County police at 10:18 a.m. Sunday. Per the alert, investigators believe Rodriguez Ascencio's disappearance poses a credible threat to her health and safety, the outlet's report notes.
The critically missing adult alert program is available for use by all Virginia law enforcement agencies, according to Virginia State Police. Before such alerts can go out, agencies are required to confer with the Virginia Missing Persons Clearinghouse and State Police, per information posted on the Virginia State Police alerts page. A separate alert activation form from Virginia State Police indicates that eligible cases involve a person 18 or older whose whereabouts are unknown because of a disappearance or abduction verified by an investigation, though the excerpt available does not detail the full set of activation criteria.
Police Ask Public for Tips
Fairfax County police have asked anyone with information about the whereabouts of Rodriguez Ascencio or Gonzalez Castellon to call dispatch at 703-691-2131. No further details about the circumstances of her disappearance, or any relationship between the two, have been released.
Fairfax County has seen critical alerts resolve quickly before. In a separate case, an Amber Alert issued in the county was canceled after 3-year-old Amelia (Mimi) Kraus, who had been abducted by her non-custodial mother, was found safe in West Virginia, according to InsideNoVA. In that case, the girl had been taken from her home in the Fort Hunt area just before 4:30 p.m. on a Tuesday, and the mother, Catherine Kraus, was later taken into custody with charges pending, including a felony abduction warrant, per the outlet's report.
No outcome has yet been reported in Rodriguez Ascencio's case, and police have not said whether she or Gonzalez Castellon have been located. Fairfax County residents are urged to remain alert and to contact police dispatch with any information.
