# Toddler Kidnapped By Uber Driver Or Sold By Her Father



## Kanky (Sep 3, 2019)

https://heavy.com/news/2019/09/nalani-johnson-missing/

*Nalani Johnson Missing: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know*
Jessica McBrideSep 2, 2019 at 5:08pm





Police Nalani Johnson is missing.

Nalani Johnson is a missing 2-year-old Pennsylvania girl who is the subject of an Amber Alert after a woman claimed her father sold her for $10,000 but her father accused that woman of driving off with the toddler.

The search is on for Nalani Johnson even after the arrest of Sharena Islam Nancy, the 25-year-old woman accused in the kidnapping of the child. The Allegheny County Police Department reported in a news release that “the driver of the Toyota Yaris sedan involved in this incident, Sharena Islam Nancy, is lodged in the Allegheny County jail awaiting arraignment after being charged with the following offenses:

• Kidnapping of a minor
• Interference with custody of children
• Concealment of whereabouts of a child.”

On Sept. 1, 2019, police announced that they continued “to investigate the disappearance of two-year-old Nalani Johnson, who was abducted yesterday in Penn Hills. During our investigation, we developed information that the 2017 black Toyota Yaris, bearing PA license plate KLW3926, travelled to the Blairsville, New Alexandria and Delmont areas of Westmoreland County during the 5:30 to 7:30 PM time frame.”

Here’s what you need to know:

*1. Sharena Nancy Told Police That She Handed the Child Off to Two Unknown Women*




Mugshot/policeSharena Islam Nancy

The story took a bizarre turn after the arrest of Sharena Nancy. Her account of what happened to Nalani sharply contradicts the story of Nalani’s father, court records show. 

The court records state that during an interview with authorities, “Nancy said that Johnson ‘sold’ Jane Doe (Nalani) to an unnamed individual for $10,000. According to Nancy, Johnson asked her (Nancy) to drive Jane Doe ’20 minutes’ from a gas station in Monroeville along U.S. Route 22. Nancy said that Johnson showed her a photograph of a black female and told her this individual would ‘flag’ her down along that route and Nancy was to turn Jane Doe over to the woman.”





‌

She told detectives that “she did as Paul Johnson instructed her and encountered a silver SUV with out of state plates parked on the berm of the road with its four way flashers on. Nancy stated that the name of the state on the registration plate was written in cursive. A black female was standing beside the vehicle and a second black female was inside the vehicle.”

Nancy told investigators, according to the court documents, that she “gave Jane Doe to the woman standing beside the vehicle, along with the car seat. Nancy said that she drove near Blairsville and then turned around. Nancy said that she then drove to Monroeville, sat in her car and smoked cigarettes while talking on the phone with her husband, who currently lives in Bangladesh.”

Police said in a news release that the FBI has joined in the search for the little girl.

“The Allegheny County Police, FBI and the PA State Police will continue to vigorously investigate this matter to determine the whereabouts of Nalani Johnson. Again, we ask anyone who may have seen anything of interest in this matter to contact the Allegheny County Police Tipline at 1-833-ALL-TIPS (1-833-255-8477). Callers can remain anonymous. We can also be reached via our social media sites,” they wrote in the news release.

You can read Sharena Nancy’s full court summary here.

*2. Nalani’s Father Says Sharena Nancy Drove Off With the Toddler, Reports Say*




The car police say was involved in the abduction.

The father of Nalani has a very different story from Sharena Nancy.

On Aug. 31, 2019, the Penn Hills Police “were alerted to a possible child abduction in their community. They responded and met with the biological father of the missing child,” the news release says.

“The father explained that his two-year-old daughter was abducted by a female and that female fled in a car with the child. The Penn Hills Police requested the assistance of the Child Abduction Response Team (CART) and an amber alert was issued. CART is comprised of FBI agents and Allegheny County Police detectives. They responded and initiated an investigation,” the release continues.

“The female alleged to have abducted the child, and her car, were located shortly after and she is currently in the company of investigators.” That’s the woman later identified as Sharena Nancy. According to KDKA-TV, Nalani’s father is Paul Johnson, and he alleged that he was in a car with Nalani and Sharena, but Sharena drove off with the child once he got out. He called police and they found the vehicle with Nancy in it, but no Nalani.


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## Tibbar (Sep 3, 2019)

*BOTH* of their stories sound suspect!
Prayers for this innocent baby. Man people suck....

ETA: as a father, how do you let one unarmed woman drive away with your baby?? How are you not found dead in the street because she had to run you over to get away? Where is this baby's mother? Story did not mention her? My heart is heavy right now...


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## dancinstallion (Sep 3, 2019)

Tibbar said:


> *BOTH* of their stories sound suspect!
> Prayers for this innocent baby. Man people suck....
> 
> ETA: as a father, how do you let one unarmed woman drive away with your baby?? How are you not found dead in the street because she had to run you over to get away? Where is this baby's mother? Story did not mention her? My heart is heavy right now...



He sold that baby. May she be returned home safely. 

So he was in the front seat while the child was in the back? What other reason did he have to get out of the car and not take the baby with him.


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## CarefreeinChicago (Sep 3, 2019)

I hope she is found safe


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## momi (Sep 3, 2019)

What in the world???  Lord please bring that baby to a safe place with people who will love and care for her! 

My goodness.


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## RoundEyedGirl504 (Sep 3, 2019)

Sick sick sick. Reminds me of the little girl in North Carolina. Some of these parents aren't fit to live.


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## Ms. Tarabotti (Sep 3, 2019)

So if the driver's story is true, why would you not drive directly to a police station and report this?
If someone told her to just deliver this suitcase or dead body to someone who would flag her down on a highway, she would do it?

Somebody must not have been paid/gotten that child for this to have been reported to the cops.


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## Kanky (Sep 3, 2019)

This is such a weird story. If the father did sell the child then why would he give the police an accurate description of the driver and her car? I could see him lying about a kidnapping but it doesn’t make sense that he would direct the police to someone who could tell on him. But then why would the driver lie about him being involved? She’s not in less trouble if she is participating in selling a child instead of just being a regular kidnapper. She’s never getting out of prison either way.


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## Kanky (Sep 3, 2019)

*Woman charged in child abduction, but search continues for Penn Hills toddler*
The woman questioned over the weekend in the kidnapping of a toddler from Penn Hills is now under arrest, but the girl remained missing as of Monday morning despite an Amber Alert and the assistance of the FBI.

Kevin Flowers

'This hits home to a lot of people': Prayer vigil held in Verona for missing Penn Hills toddler

On Monday, as Nalani's family gathered in Delmont to hand out flyers and search with volunteer firefighters for the girl, her relatives defended Mr. Johnson.

His mother, Taji Walsh, 42, of the West End said she suspects that the child was taken as part of a "human trafficking" scheme; she would not elaborate.

On Monday afternoon, county police did not speak to the media after meeting with family members Monday afternoon. Two detectives were on the scene.



Police are seeking the public’s help in finding an Evenflo Maestro Sport Harness booster seat, similar to the one pictured above, that may have been used in connection with the abduction. (Allegheny County Police)
Ms. Walsh thanked the 30 to 40 volunteers who were handing out flyers and asked that "you keep my family and Nalani in your prayers."

She said that she was on vacation in California when the situation developed, and she flew back Sunday. She claimed that Ms. Nancy "has been lying throughout this whole thing" and said her son was innocent.

"If he was involved the police would have charged him," Ms. Walsh said.

She elaborated on that point later Monday. "Who's sitting in jail? She's in jail," referring to Ms. Nancy. "My son is out."

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Amber Alert issued after toddler girl abducted in Penn Hills

Paul Johnson's aunt, Pariss Johnson, also rejected Ms. Nancy's claim that her nephew had something to do with his daughter's disappearance.

“That’s not true,” Pariss Johnson said.

A person will “say anything at that point when you’re being arrested, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it’s fact," Pariss Johnson said. "He's been cleared, but again the police, we want them to come out and make a statement in regards to that.”

She acknowledged that investigators have not publicly exonerated her nephew or said definitively that he was not involved, adding that that was "because this [Ms. Nancy's arrest] just transpired last night or today within the last couple of hours.”

No one could be reached Monday morning from Allegheny County police.

County spokeswoman Amie Downs said there was nothing to release beyond what was in the statements police had already issued about the abduction, the Amber Alert and the arrest.

It is not clear what relationship, if any, exists among Mr. Johnson, his daughter and Ms. Nancy.

KDKA-TV reported Sunday night that Ms. Nancy's husband, MD Raihan Uddin, told the station through a video call from overseas that his wife told him she did not take Nalani.

Allegheny County online records show that Ms. Nancy and Mr. Uddin were married in February 2018 on Valentine’s Day.

In an interview conducted Monday through Mr. Uddin's Facebook account, a person believed to be Mr. Uddin, of Dhaka, Bangladesh, wrote, "She told me she never took the child."

Mr. Uddin said that his wife is American, and he is Bangladeshi.

He said that Penn Hills police as well as unidentified relatives of Mr. Johnson's told him that the two knew one another.

"News says Paul Johnson doesn't know Nancy, but Penn Hills detective told me they knew each other and Paul's family members told me he knew Nancy since March..." Mr. Uddin wrote.

He said that he and Ms. Nancy lived together since April 2017 in New York City, where he was attending college, and then they moved to Pittsburgh. He said they had a child in June 2018 just before he was taken into immigration custody, where he was until May, when his student visa terminated.

"*If she can hide her totally one part of her life from me then I don't know what she's capable [of], even though we've been great," Mr. Uddin wrote.*

He said his wife was working as a ride-share drive for both Uber and Lyft.

Mr. Uddin told KDKA that "he was confused about everything that has happened. He said his wife was working as a ride-share driver Saturday night. He claimed the two were talking as she finished up around 7 p.m., and she didn’t tell him anything about having a child in the car," the station reported.

“ 'I don’t know if she did or if she didn’t. One part of me believes that she can. Another part is like – nothing’s been found. It has to be solved and you can’t make conclusions,' ” KDKA reported that Mr. Uddin said.

Ms. Johnson said her nephew and Nalani's family remain optimistic about her safe return.

“We’re holding up as anybody could be in this type of situation. It’s my great-niece. She’s almost 2 years old. We’re all devastated and scared because we don’t know what’s going on at this point. There's so much speculation, and people out there really don’t know the facts,” Ms. Johnson said.

"We believe Nalani is OK, and we believe she will be coming home very soon. So that’s all we’re going to believe at this point.”

The situation began to unfold Saturday evening when police were called to Bryant and Clay drives for an alleged child abduction.

Police said Mr. Johnson, the father, was at the scene and was crying and visibly upset.

Mr. Johnson told police that Ms. Nancy had kidnapped his daughter in a black Toyota Yaris with Uber and Lyft stickers on it. Ms. Johnson cast doubt on the notion that Ms. Nancy was a ride-share driver.

He said he was riding in Ms. Nancy’s Yaris with a friend of his, identified as Justin Rouse, and Nalani. At Bryant and Clay, Mr. Johnson told police, he got out and went to get his daughter from the back seat, but Ms. Nancy drove away, according to the complaint.

The toddler was in a child safety seat in the back of the car. It was not clear from the complaint where Mr. Johnson’s friend was at the time.

Ms. Johnson confirmed that her nephew knows the man, but she declined to offer any details about him or his whereabouts, or whether Mr. Johnson had prior dealings with Ms. Nancy.

Mr. Johnson told police that he called Ms. Nancy’s cell phone but no one answered. He then called 911, the complaint said.

Police issued an Amber Alert for the vehicle, and a Penn Hills police officer spotted it Saturday at 7:26 p.m. as it was heading north on Rodi Road. He pulled the car over, but neither the girl nor a car seat were inside. 

Penn Hills police Chief Howard Burton said that Ms. Nancy was driving. Police took her in for questioning and then turned the case over to a special county police-FBI joint task force.

Police said Ms. Nancy was captured on camera at the Sheetz in Murrysville around 5:30 p.m., just 30 minutes after the alleged abduction.

At some point over the weekend, a county police detective and FBI agent interviewed Ms. Nancy. She told them that Mr. Johnson asked her to drive the girl 20 minutes from a Monroeville gas station along Route 22, the complaint said.

Ms. Nancy told investigators that the father showed her a picture of a woman and said that the lady would flag Ms. Nancy down along the road, at which point she should turn Nalani over to the woman, according to the complaint.

“Nancy told detectives that on Saturday evening, she did as Paul Johnson instructed her and encountered a silver SUV with out-of-state plates parked on the berm of the road with its four-way flashers on,” the complaint said.

A woman was standing outside the vehicle and another woman was inside, Ms. Nancy told police.

She said she gave the girl to the woman standing outside, along with the car seat, the complaint said. Ms. Nancy said she then drove near Blairsville and turned around before driving to Monroeville, where she sat in her car, smoked cigarettes and spoke with her husband in Bangladesh.

Police wrote in the complaint that they found no evidence of a silver SUV in the area at the time Ms. Nancy claimed to have given the child away.

Nalani, who turns 2 this month and goes by the nickname “Mooh,” has short curly black hair and brown eyes, and is of average height and weight for a child that age, according to Allegheny County police.

Her father told police that she was wearing a black tank top with flamingos and the words “Born to Shine” in gold letters, a black skirt with flamingos and black sandals.

Ms. Johnson said her nephew is heartsick.

“He's terrified. This is his daughter. People are speculating about him, and they don’t know the whole situation. Can you imagine you’re out trying to take your daughter somewhere and have a good time? You don’t think that this is something that’s going to happen to your family. You see it on the news all the time..." Ms. Johnson said.

"He’s like any concerned father. He’s scared out of his mind, but he remains hopeful."

Nalani's family gathered Monday morning in Delmont to hand out flyers in Delmont, Blairsville and New Alexandria — all areas where the Toyota Yaris was seen traveling Saturday night.

The family has set up a staging area at the Delmont Volunteer Fire Department on Route 66 and is dispersing from there to search for the girl or anyone who might have seen the kidnapper. They are handing out flyers, and dozens of volunteers are assisting with the search.

Anyone with information on the case or who may have been at the Sheetz Saturday evening is asked to call the Allegheny County police tip line at 1-833-ALL-TIPS (1-833-255-8477). Anyone who has seen Nalani should call 9-1-1 immediately.

https://www.post-gazette.com/news/c...ping-penn-hills-arrest-1/stories/201909020065


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## Laela (Sep 3, 2019)

This is disheartening..what a beautiful, innocent child... I don't believe the father sold his child... I don't even believe two black females were involved. That woman's story doesn't hold water.. but I pray God protect that child, wherever she is! Where's her mother???


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## intellectualuva (Sep 3, 2019)

Wow. This is scary and so sad. I hope that cutie is found.


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## dicapr (Sep 3, 2019)

dancinstallion said:


> He sold that baby. May she be returned home safely.
> 
> So he was in the front seat while the child was in the back? What other reason did he have to get out of the car and not take the baby with him.



It would only take a split second for someone to pull off in a car. I don’t know if he is telling the truth but it is not hard to imagine a full grown man may need to get out of the car for more room to maneuver a child out of a car seat.


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## Tibbar (Sep 3, 2019)

These updates on this story are not good.
This poor baby has been found dead in a park.
The police also say the woman charged and the father were in a relationship.


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## Cheekychica (Sep 3, 2019)

*Police Confirm Nalani Johnson Found Dead In Blairsville*
September 3, 2019 at 5:22 pm
*Filed Under: *Amber Alert, Blairsville, Indiana County, Local TV, Missing Child, Nalani Johnson, Pine Ridge Park





BLAIRSVILLE, Pa. (KDKA) — The missing Penn Hills toddler has been found dead.

Authorities found the body of 2-year-old Nalani Johnson on Tuesday at Pine Ridge Park in Indiana County, Indiana County District Attorney Patrick Dougherty confirmed in a press conference.

*WATCH: Authorities address the press —*

The Indiana County Coroner is on the scene after law enforcement set up crime scene tape on the scene.

_

_
_(Source: Allegheny County Police)

Law enforcement tapped off a house in the area of the park and was seen removing items from the residence. 

Dougherty said an autopsy will be performed Wednesday, but could not say the manner or the cause of Johnson’s death.

“This is a cooperative effort between Allegheny County and Indiana County to try and get the best outcome and determine what happened to this child,” Dougherty said. 

Allegheny County Police said the father of the toddler and the woman charged with kidnapping her were in a romantic relationship.




(Photo Credit: KDKA)

Police, on Monday, filed kidnapping and other related charges against Sharena Nancy.

“We believe she is involved,” Dougherty said at the press conference. “To what extent, that is still to be determined.”

According to investigators, after taking off with Nalani, Nancy’s 2017 black Toyota Yaris with Lyft and Uber stickers on the front passenger-side windshield drove east on Route 22 on Saturday, all the way to the Blairsville, Indiana County, area. She was stopped around 7:30 p.m. along Rodi Road by a Penn Hills Police officer.




(Source: Allegheny County Jail)

The Pine Ridge Park was a stopping point for Nancy, cell phone trafficked showed, before returning to the Pittsburgh area.

*Rest of story here ->*
https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/09/03/nalani-johnsons-body-found/amp/
_


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## Laela (Sep 3, 2019)

... Have mercy... I just know she's in a much better place.


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## sheanu (Sep 3, 2019)

I just don't understand people. 

Have you guys ever thought that you might have bumped into someone who has done something like this (intentionally seriously harmed or murdered someone) in their lifetime or will do something like this before they pass? I'm just wondering how folks exist carrying that spirit around.


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## Chaosbutterfly (Sep 3, 2019)

God, that poor baby.
How can people be so evil.

All of them are lying.
I think the child died at some point in the ride, or maybe she was dead when they got in the car, and the father told the woman to take her body and hide it. And then after she drove away, the father called and reported the child kidnapped to cover himself and pin the whole thing on her. But for her to lie and tell such a strange story at that, the truth must be even worse. 

Where is the friend who was with them and why hasn't he come forward? All of them are lying.


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## intellectualuva (Sep 3, 2019)

What a horrible update.


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## faithVA (Sep 4, 2019)

Chaosbutterfly said:


> God, that poor baby.
> How can people be so evil.
> 
> All of them are lying.
> ...


This is what I was thinking. The friend had probably left earlier. The baby died after. 

One report said they had an argument before Ms. Nancy drove off. Both stories are still weird though.


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## Everything Zen (Sep 4, 2019)

sheanu said:


> I just don't understand people.
> 
> Have you guys ever thought that you might have bumped into someone who has done something like this (intentionally seriously harmed or murdered someone) in their lifetime or will do something like this before they pass? I'm just wondering how folks exist carrying that spirit around.



I’ve never ran into a murderer to my knowledge but I recently found out that I had welcomed a repeat child molester/rapist that skipped out on parole in another state in my home. He’s back in jail. I was physically ill.


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## sheanu (Sep 4, 2019)

Everything Zen said:


> I’ve never ran into a murderer to my knowledge but I recently found out that I had welcomed a repeat child molester/rapist that skipped out on parole in another state in my home. He’s back in jail. I was physically ill.


Goodness. You just can never tell.

This thought really just popped into my head for the first time after this last season of Jessica Jones on Netflix. One character was a serial murderer and there was this one scene where he walked into a crowd of people and just blended in so perfectly that he disappeared. It hit me that you can never really tell what the person next to you is capable of.


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## Chicoro (Sep 6, 2019)

sheanu said:


> Goodness. You just can never tell.
> 
> This thought really just popped into my head for the first time after this last season of Jessica Jones on Netflix. One character was a serial murderer and there was this one scene where he walked into a crowd of people and just blended in so perfectly that he disappeared.* It hit me that you can never really tell what the person next to you is capable of.*



That is correct. Police officers say that 50% of crimes and murders go unsolved unless the murderer makes an error, or someone provides a tip.


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## jasmatazz (Sep 6, 2019)

The things I wish I could do to people who hurt children. May that sweet girl Rest In Peace.


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