A desperate search is underway in the Houston area for a missing teenager, and her family is pleading for help. Sixteen-year-old Sasha Mukul disappeared more than two months ago in Baytown, and investigators and relatives are still trying to find her.
For her mother, the uncertainty has been agonizing. She says she has no idea where her daughter is and is deeply worried about her safety, describing weeks of not knowing whether Sasha is all right.
This week brought a new lead from investigators. Baytown police shared an update saying that Sasha may be in the Katy or Humble area, widening the focus of the search beyond Baytown itself.
The timeline traces back to the spring. According to police, Sasha was last seen on May 18th, around midnight, leaving her grandmother's home along Speckle Belly Drive, and she was wearing a gray shirt and blue jeans at the time.
There is also video evidence from the night she vanished. Surveillance footage shows Sasha walking out the front door with a handful of belongings, and her mother says the teenager has kept her phone turned off since then.
The case has drawn in national resources aimed at finding missing children. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is asking for the public's help with any information on Sasha's whereabouts.
Her mother, who says she has not spoken to Sasha since she disappeared and that the teen had never gone missing before, has a direct message for her daughter. She said that if Sasha sees it, she should know she is loved more than words can express, that she is not in any trouble, and that the family only wants to know she is safe and to bring her home.
For now, the appeal is squarely aimed at the community. Anyone who may have seen Sasha or who knows something about where she may be is urged to call Baytown police, as the search stretches into its third month.