UPDATE: A Howard University spokesperson says Arianna Carr has been found and is unharmed. She was found in Prince George’s county, but the university would not give anymore specifics about where she had been.
WASHINGTON – A Howard University student has been missing for almost a week, and a family friend says all of her online social interactions seem to have stopped.
Arianna Carr, 17, left her home in Oakland, Calif. on a return flight to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 7, and was last seen on the Howard campus on Jan. 10, and her family has not been able to contact her.
“Her Facebook page, her Twitter page, her email — she has not been on any of these,” says Erin Horne Montgomery, a family friend from their church back in California.
She says Carr left her phone charger in California, and the cell phone has been off since last week.
Carr’s mother is coming to D.C. to be closer to the search. Her church is helping her raise money for her flight.
“She’s emotionally, physically, mentally exhausted. She hasn’t slept in quite a few days,” says Montgomery.
The news that Carr hadn’t been logging into her email, Facebook or Twitter accounts came as the university and police attempted to use more online social media to find her.
Howard University had already been using it’s Facebook account to post information about Carr and now D.C. police have asked the Black and Missing Foundation to get involved.
The foundation will be using their social media accounts to help in the search.
“Social media has proven to be very vital in a lot of missing people that we have dealt with,” says Derrica Wilson, the foundations co-founder.
Carr is described as a 5’7″ black woman, weighing about 140 lbs. She has black, shoulder-length hair.
Anyone with information about her whereabouts are asked to call the Howard University Department of Public Safety at 202 806-1100 or investigator William Brown at 202 437-2168.
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