A 25-year-old woman vanished after pulling over to check on a toddler who was wondering alone along an Alabama interstate highway.
Carlethia ‘Carlee’ Nichole Russell was on the phone with her sister-in-law when she got out of her car to check up on the child. The family member then heard a sudden scream and shortly after, lost all contact with Russell.
When officers arrived at the location, they found Russell’s car, along with her cell phone, purse, wig and apple watch in the nearby area – but Russell and the child were nowhere to be seen.
Hoover Police have not received any other calls of a missing child. One witness reported possibly seeing a gray vehicle and a man standing outside of Carlee’s vehicle, but police said they have no additional information.
‘In the process at some point she got out of the car and my daughter-in-law could hear her asking the child if they were okay,’ her mother, Talitha Russell, said. ‘The child did not respond, or at least she did not hear her respond, he or she respond.’
‘And then she heard our daughter Carlee scream, and from there on all we could hear was noise … background noise in her phone, which we later found out was noise from the interstate.’
Russel left work around 8:20 PM on Thursday before stopping to pick up food for her and her mom.
She then travelled toward Hoover and called 911 at about 9:30 PM to report the missing child wandering on the side of Interstate 459.
After calling 911, Russell reportedly called her sister-in-law to tell her she was going to check up on the child. The family member lost contact with her at about 9:36 pm but the line remained open.
Responding officers located Russell’s abandoned car along with her cell phone, her purse, wig and apple watch in the nearby area, but no sign of her or a child.
Hellbound and Down 