After 40 years, a missing child case has concluded with both a heartfelt reunion and a felony charge.

Michelle Newton, now 46, disappeared at the age of three. Authorities now claim that her mother, Debra Newton, abducted her, according to a press release from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department obtained by Oxygen.

Debra, who had assumed the alias Sharon Nealy, was apprehended in The Villages, Florida, on November 24. This arrest followed a tip-off to Crime Stoppers that linked her and her daughter to a missing persons case in Kentucky from 1983, as stated in the release.

Subsequently, law enforcement officials interviewed Michelle.

“She expressed that she only realized she was a victim after understanding all that she had missed,” stated Jefferson County Chief Deputy Col. Steve Healey in the December 8 press release. “Detectives remained determined, refusing to allow the case to go cold. Their persistence—and the bravery of a Crime Stoppers informant—finally reunited a daughter with her family after four decades.”

Debra has been charged with custodial interference, a felony offense in Kentucky, with no statute of limitations. She pleaded not guilty, per Fox News. 

Meanwhile, Michelle reunited with her father, Joseph Newton. 

“She’s always been in our heart. I can’t explain that moment of walking in and getting to put my arms back around my daughter,” Joseph told WLKY. “I wouldn’t trade that moment for anything. It was just like seeing her when she was first born. It was like an angel.”

Debra, who was once listed among the FBI’s Top 8 Most Wanted parental-kidnapping fugitives, has been released on bond.

“My intention is to support them both through this,” Michelle told the outlet. “And help them both just wrap it up so that we can all heal.” 

The sheriff’s office hopes their story inspires people who know something—to say something. 

“People think calling in tips is ‘snitching.’ It isn’t,” Col. Healey said. “You’re helping victims. You’re helping families. This case proves that one phone call can change a life.”