A Florida father’s desperate search for his missing teenage daughter has finally come to an end after the 16-year-old was found safe more than 1,200 miles away in New Jersey.

Sophia Veronica Cover, who disappeared after being captured on surveillance footage leaving her family’s Florida home in the early hours of July 31, was located in New Jersey by the FBI, according to her father.

“Sophia was found safe in New Jersey by the FBI, and tonight our family finally gets to say the words we have been praying for: Our girl is safe,” Rick Cover announced on Facebook Monday evening.

The emotional message brought an end to nearly two weeks of uncertainty for the Cover family.

Sophia had been missing for 11 days when authorities located her.

Her father immediately praised the investigators who worked on the case, specifically thanking the Collier County Sheriff’s Office and Detective Marisol Rodriguez.

But Cover also made a point of thanking the countless strangers who joined the search.

“And to this incredible community, our friends, our family, and thousands of people we have never even met who shared Sophia’s face, prayed for her, sent tips, made videos, hung flyers, and kept her story alive: THANK YOU,” he wrote.

“For the first time in what feels like forever, I can finally say this: Sophia has been found. Sophia is safe.”

Cover told Gulf Coast News Now that he planned to travel to New Jersey as soon as possible so he could finally see his daughter again.

The father said Sophia was found staying with friends.

However, he said he was still waiting for information from the Florida Department of Children and Families about how the teenager managed to travel so far from home and when he would be able to bring her back.

“We’re going to take it a day at a time. I’m going to go up and get her. We’re going to find out exactly what happened,” Cover said.

The mystery began July 31, when surveillance cameras at the family’s home in Golden Gate Estates captured Sophia leaving the residence on foot during the early morning hours.

There was no immediately apparent explanation for why she had left.

As the days passed without answers, her father refused to accept the idea that she had simply run away.

He threw himself into the search, helping organize a massive effort involving law enforcement, relatives, friends and members of the community.

Sophia’s disappearance quickly spread online as people shared her photograph and searched for possible clues about where she might have gone.

At the height of the search, Cover made an emotional public appeal directly to his daughter.

“Everybody is looking for you,” he said.

“And, if you’re out there on your own, it’s really easy to come home. You can go to any police officer. You can go to any adult that is safe.”

Now, after 11 agonizing days, that nightmare has finally taken a hopeful turn.

Sophia has been found alive and safe in New Jersey, while her family prepares for the long-awaited reunion.

For Cover, the immediate priority is simple: get to his daughter, bring her home and finally learn what happened during the days she was missing.

Source: Nypost.com