Reward increased to $30,000 for search for missing 12-year-old Hall County girl

HALL COUNTY, GA. – Law enforcement officials are hoping an increased reward could help them in their desperate search for a 12-year-old Gainesville girl who has been missing for two weeks.

Maria Gomez-Perez was last seen around 10 a.m. on May 29 at her home on Westside Drive in Gainesville. Her family says they have not heard from her since her disappearance.

Speaking at a news conference Tuesday, Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch said he considered the girl “in danger.”

“There are so many possibilities as to where she could be and what could have happened to her,” Couch said. “I really consider her in danger.”

To help in the search for Gomez-Perez, an anonymous businessman donated $10,000 for information on her disappearance. With this new donation, the reward now stands at $30,000.

“As investigators from the Hall County Sheriff's Office and other law enforcement agencies continue their efforts to find Maria, I am once again grateful for a new outpouring of support from the
additional reward funding,” said Sheriff Gerald Couch. “Someone in the community has that one clue or piece of information that could lead to Maria. I pray that this increased reward will be an encouragement to
let them manifest themselves. »

Search for Maria Gomez-Perez

More than 70 people were officially involved in the investigation, including members of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the FBI, Homeland Security and the Guatemalan consulate.

Couch said they have distributed 50,000 flyers and placed digital billboards on four busy roads in the county.

Authorities believe Maria may have made contact with someone outside the home the day she disappeared, but they don't know who that person was. Investigators downloaded data from several phones associated with Maria and scoured her social media for clues.

Maria is 5 feet 3 inches tall, weighs approximately 110 pounds, and has dark hair and brown eyes.

If you have any information that could help you in this case, call 911 or the Hall County Sheriff's Office at (770) 503-3232.

FOX 5 Atlanta's Chris King contributed to this report.