BARBERTON, Ohio — A Barberton family is continuing its search for a missing 25-year-old woman after they say she went missing on December 17.
The family says they need the community's help now more than ever to find Ma'Ri'Ana Spaulding. Police in Barberton say they have checked her house, her phone log, and have asked neighbors if they've seen anything. All to no avail.
It's a mother's worst nightmare.
“I can’t. I can’t eat or sleep," Spaulding's mother, Lavina Black, cried. "I need my daughter home! Her son needs his mother.”
Black says her daughter is a fun-loving, sweet social butterfly who would call almost every day to check on her and the family.
“The weird factor is, this is out of her character. All of a sudden, no social media at all, no one can get a hold of her, no sightings of the vehicle, no way to reach her on her cell phone. Nobody has heard from her. It’s like she vanished," Black adds.
When Ma'Ri'Ana missed Christmas dinner, that's when the worrying began.
“Ma’Ri’Ana is the type of person who always is in contact with us. This has never happened before. That’s how I know for a fact in my spirit and in my gut that something is terribly wrong," Black says.
What was even more strange for Black was when she tried to send her daughter a message on social media, all of her accounts were deactivated.
“All of her social media is completely wiped out, even her messenger," Black explains. "Everything! Anything that we could use to contact her, no longer exists."
Ma'Ri'Ana's mom believes her daughter is being held against her will in Texas with a man she met on Instagram. Black says she's calling on the community to help get her daughter back home where she belongs.
“Just keep it alive, keep talking about it," Black tells the community. "The more that it’s shared, the more people that it can reach and we can bring Ma’Ri’Ana home alive and safe."
Ma'Ri'Ana's car is described as a 2007 champagne-colored Chevrolet Impala. If you have any details about her disappearance, call police immediately.