Each September, a Cumberland County community observes a heartbreaking tradition that everyone involved would happily end.
But they can’t end it, because their mission involves a missing child.
The people who come to Bridgeton City Park and gather around a tree near the playground every September are there to remind the world that Dulce Maria Alavez still hasn’t come home.
The 5-year-old was reported missing during a family outing to the park on the afternoon of Sept. 16, 2019.
Her disappearance triggered a massive search and a six-year investigation that has yet to find her.
Family and supporters came to the park Saturday afternoon to mark six years since Dulce vanished.
Soon after Dulce’s disappearance, police released witness descriptions and a sketch of a person of interest, though that individual was never located or identified, officials said.
An unclaimed reward for information about the case stands at $75,000.
In 2020, an FBI agent on the case told NJ Advance Media the child was likely abducted by someone in a crime of opportunity. The agency has remained publicly silent on the case since then, referring questions to local investigators.
Dulce would be 11 years old now and investigators remain hopeful that she’s still alive.
Anyone with information about Dulce’s disappearance is asked to contact authorities through any of these options:
- Bridgeton Police: 856-451-0033
- Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office: 856-453-0486
- New Jersey State Police: 609-882-2000, ext. 2554
- Anonymous tips may be sent to Bridgeton Police at bpdops.com/tips or to the prosecutor’s office at njccpo.gov/tips.
- Information may also be submitted to the Anti-Predator Project, by calling 305-796-4859 or emailing [email protected].
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Matt Gray may be reached at [email protected].
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