A teenager from Kentucky who had been missing for several months was recently located safe and sound, hundreds of miles from home.

Wynter Wagoner, aged 13, vanished from her foster parents’ residence in Orlando on October 14. Her disappearance sparked a widespread search effort.

On December 26, authorities discovered Wynter in a home in Maryland, situated 560 miles from where she was last seen. This breakthrough came after investigators acted on a tip-off regarding her whereabouts.

Maryland police apprehended 37-year-old Christian Alexander Delgado, charging him with kidnapping in connection to Wynter’s disappearance.

In his first court hearing, Delgado described the situation as a ‘misunderstanding,’ attempting to clarify his involvement in the case.

Court documents obtained by WKYT revealed that Delgado told police he met the girl online.

He claimed to have driven from Florida to Kentucky to get her, before driving her back to Florida and going to Maryland.

Wynter allegedly told friends and family that she was planning on running away before she went missing, according to the court documents.

Wynter Wagoner (pictured), 13, was found alive in Maryland two months after she was last seen at her foster parents’ home in Kentucky

Christian Alexander Delgado (pictured), 37, was arrested and charged with her kidnapping, but claims the situation is a ‘misunderstanding’

The teen was finally found after she called her aunt and gave her the address of the Maryland home where she was staying.

Delgado was transferred to the Rockcastle County Detention Center in Kentucky on Friday, according to jail records.

He is being held on $1 million bond, and his next court date is scheduled for January 5. He is yet to enter a plea.

Wynter’s family has expressed their relief that she was found alive and is finally home.

‘We are incredibly grateful that Wynter has been found. Our focus now is on her wellbeing, her healing, and surrounding her with love, stability, and privacy as she takes the next steps forward,’ Wagoner’s cousin, John Miller, told the Daily Mail in a statement.

‘What she has been through is deeply personal, and she deserves compassion and protection as she recovers. 

‘We want to thank the countless people across communities and state lines who shared her story, prayed for her, and refused to let her be forgotten. The awareness, the vigilance, and the persistence truly mattered.’

Her father, Dusty Wagoner, told WKTY that the teen is blaming herself for the situation.

Delgado allegedly told police he met the girl online, and claimed to have driven from Florida to Kentucky to get her, then drove her back to Florida before going to Maryland

‘She’s blaming herself for a lot of the stuff that she doesn’t understand. She is a child. She doesn’t understand,’ her said.

‘Other than that, I think she’s doing okay. She’s ready to come home. She’s ready to come home, she told me.

‘I know nine out of ten kids in her situation never would have made it out of it. I feel so overwhelmed and so relieved, and I’m so thankful to God.’