Her Daughter Went Missing But a Strange Facebook Post Deepens the Mystery

Rosemary was a typical high school freshman. Her yearbook photo shows a smiling, happy girl, fresh-faced and ready to take on the world. But who knows what problems and sadness lurk behind this sweet smile?

Rosemary was a happy child, bringing delight to her family. But when she turned fourteen, things changed. The once joyful little girl became a withdrawn, surly teenager.

It was hard for Maureen to reconcile the sweet daughter she raised with the mouthy and rebellious teenager. But Maureen never anticipated that Rosemary was so unhappy that she would consider leaving home.

When Maureen awoke one morning in 2015, she noticed that Rosemary's bed was unmade. Although she was concerned with her daughter's absence, she assumed that Rosemary had spent the night with friends and forgotten to call.

When Rosemary didn't return home after two days, Maureen became worried. She contacted the local police, who thought Rosemary had just run away. Many teens run away from home, they told the distraught mother.

Maureen knew in her heart that Rosemary was not a runaway. Maureen distributed photos of her daughter around the community in hopes that someone had seen the wayward teen.

Despite Maureen's best efforts to locate her daughter, Rosemary remained missing. Maureen searched fruitlessly throughout the area, looking for the missing teen. After four weeks, though, it appeared as though Rosemary did not want to be found.

Maureen knew in her heart that Rosemary was out there somewhere - hurt, alone, sad. Although the police offered little help to the grieving mother, Maureen continued her quest for her missing child.

Maureen did not give up her search. She posted missing person flyers around her Portland, Oregon, community and asked area businesses to hang them inside. Maureen was ceaseless in keeping attention on the missing teen.

Rosemary remained missing, as weeks stretched into months. Maureen never gave up hope for her teenage daughter returning, but as time went on with no sign of her, even the most stalwart searchers became discouraged.

After months of fruitless searching, however, Maureen began to receive more information about her missing daughter. She received messages from people that said they had seen Rosemary, including acquaintances of the missing girl.

The teens who knew Rosemary told Maureen that they had seen Rosemary on the street, around town. When the friends went up to Rosemary to talk, and ask her where she had been, Rosemary would avoid them or run away.

Six months to the day that Rosemary disappeared, her mother Maureen logged onto Facebook. To Maureen's shock, she discovered new photos of Rosemary, posted online to her profile.

To anyone who didn't know, the online photos of Rosemary looked just like any other typical Portland teen's. Maureen was surprised to see how normal her daughter looked, even healthy.

Although some would have said that Rosemary looked fine, Maureen knew that there was something off about her daughter's smile. Despite her expression, Maureen detected more behind the eyes.

As Maureen pored over the photos of her beloved daughter, she noticed other differences. Rosemary's once bright red hair had been colored to a dark, obviously dyed maroon color.

Maureen realized that her daughter wasn't somewhere that she wanted to be. The haunted eyes, badly dyed hair, and forced smile led Maureen to the conclusion that Rosemary had been a victim of human trafficking.

Every year, human traffickers take advantage of vulnerable youths, removing them from their safe homes and forcing them into prostitution or worse. Young teens of both genders are especially targeted by these criminals.

Maureen immediately took to social media for help. “She is missing and endangered and is presumed to have fallen into the hands of child trafficking criminals,” Maureen wrote. “Since she disappeared, I have found images of her online.”

Maureen checked the site where her daughter's pictures had been posted multiple times per day, but to no avail. Nothing new was posted, and Maureen began to fear that her daughter was being punished for trying to reach out through the internet.

Maureen posted frequently, on different social media sites, including the Missing Persons of America database. She hoped that Rosemary would see the messages and find a way to respond. Finally, in early 2016, Maureen's efforts got a result.

On January 16, 2018, Rosemary's father, David, announced that the young girl had been found. And although her whereabouts weren't learned, the family was relieved to learn that Rosemary had not been abducted.

Rosemary had not been abducted by human traffickers, as her mother Maureen had guessed. Instead, Rosemary had run away. The young girl had been too embarrassed or frightened to return home after a few days.

Rosemary, along with her younger siblings, are now in foster care. While the circumstances for her removal from the Gullet home are unclear, the change seems to agree with Rosemary. She is described as mature, well-behaved, and sweet.

Although the Gullet family was very vocal about locating their daughter, since Rosemary's discovery, few details have been released to the public. The circumstances surrounding Rosemary's entry into foster care are equally unclear.