MISSING MARATHON TEEN FOUND IN ALABAMA

Sheriff’s Office says case was not an abduction

ALEX RICKERT

alex@keysweekly.com

A14-year-old girl who went missing from Marathon on the morning of June 14 was found in Alabama within 36 hours, according to Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay and family members in communication with the Weekly.

Social media posts began circulating Wednesday afternoon when the family of Phoebee Elizabeth Ritchie reported her as missing. According to the posts, Ritchie was last seen at a bus stop in Marathon around 7 a.m., but did not report to summer school in Marathon as expected.

Various reports sent to the Weekly throughout that night and the morning of June 15 detailed slightly different versions of events. Speaking with the Weekly at 1 p.m. on June 15, Ramsay said that the Sheriff’s Office believed the incident was a case of a runaway, not an abduction.

“This is not someone that we believe was a snatch-and-grab from a bus stop. … It’s still important, still concerning, and she’s been listed into state and national databases as a missing runaway,” he said. He reiterated several times that MCSO did not believe the case was a “nefarious foul play situation” at that time.

Ramsay said that an interview with the girl’s grandmother and primary caregiver, Audrey Curtiss, showed “a change in (Phoebee’s) routine” the day before she was reported as missing, and that he believed there had been prior confrontation between Ritchie and Curtiss.

An update to the original social media post around 4 p.m. on June 15 indicated that Ritchie had been found.

Ramsay confirmed to the Weekly at 4:30 p.m. the same day that Ritchie had been located in Alabama and that the case was a runaway as expected, with no foul play involved. It was not immediately clear how the teen had reached her final destination.

Speaking with the Weekly in follow-up messages on June 19, Curtiss confirmed Ritchie had been found and had returned to Marathon, but disputed earlier reports of confrontation between the two, saying there “had not been any problems with Phoebee in over a year.”

“Thank you to the men and women on the police force who were so diligent in searching for her and bringing her back home safely,” she said.

Habitat for Humanity of Key West & the Lower Keys recently completed the construction of Moss Landing, its 16-home development on Cudjoe Key, and celebrated its new homeowners.

Habitat used the occasion to honor the 16 families who worked hard to purchase their homes, and Mark Moss, Habitat’s former executive director for whom the development is named. Members of the Moss family were present for the event and received an original painting by local artist and Habitat homeowner Abigail White. The painting was replicated for the Moss Landing neighborhood sign.

The celebration was held at Monroe County Fire Rescue Station 11 on Cudjoe Key, which is adjacent to Moss Landing. Firefighters and staff provided tours of the fire station and free snow cones.

Donations from corporations and individuals make up a crucial portion of the construction budget for Habitat’s home builds.

At the Moss Landing celebration, Publix district manager Kevin Donlan presented Habitat with a check for $100,000 from Publix Super Markets Charities. The contribution helped build the home purchased by a local health care worker and mother of two.

Other major contributions toward the Moss Landing build came from Habitat’s local corporate sponsors, including Strunk Ace Hardware, the Hemingway Home and Museum, Royal Furniture and Design, Manley deBoer Lumber, and Historic Tours of America. Habitat presented each of these businesses with plaques to commemorate their sponsorships. — Contributed