Berrien County deputies search for missing girl last seen at bus station

A photo released by the Berrien County Sheriff's Office of the missing teen who was last seen on Sunday, June 23, 2024.

BENTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — Berrien County deputies are asking for the community's help in locating a missing teenager, who was last seen getting into a car with a man she had apparently hooked up with friendship at a bus station.

Around 7 a.m. Sunday, deputies said the girl was dropped off at the Benton Harbor Greyhound bus station, located in M-139 and Nickerson Avenue. She was waiting for her mother, who was arriving from Missouri, according to a news release from the Berrien County Sheriff's Office.

The video shows the teen “befriending” a man who arrived on a bus around 9:25 a.m., the release said. The two men talked while the man waited his turn.

Then, when the man's vehicle — a dark blue or black Chevrolet Equinox SUV — arrived, there was a brief conversation with the teen and the driver of the car, according to the sheriff's office. The teen then collected her belongings from the waiting room, put them in the car and left with the two people, the office says.

Deputies say they don't believe foul play, but no one has heard from the teen since then.

The Chevrolet Equinox was last seen heading east on Nickerson Avenue, according to the sheriff's office.

If you have any information, you are asked to contact deputies at 269.983.7141, ext. 7224, or Crime Stoppers at 1.800.342.7867.