Police in Dothan, Alabama, used license plate readers and drones to find a Florida woman suspected of abducting a minor, WFTV reported on July 30, 2026. Orlando police had notified Dothan that she was believed to be in the area with an endangered child under age 10. Using the description and photographs from the readers, officers located the vehicle with drones, stopped it just south of Dothan, and arrested the 38-year-old woman. The child was found in the vehicle.
At a glance
- Agency
- Dothan Police Department
- Alert from
- Orlando police, who believed the woman was in the Dothan area
- Wanted for
- Charges including kidnapping of a minor
- Vehicle
- A red sedan with a Florida tag, located on West Main Street
- Arrest
- The woman was taken to the Houston County Jail to await extradition to Florida
- Child
- Found in the vehicle and placed with Alabama’s human resources agency
How the plate reader helped
This is what the report says about the technology’s role.
- Readers produced a description and photographs of the vehicle.
- Police used drones to locate it on West Main Street.
- Investigators stopped the vehicle just south of Dothan.
The outcome
- The woman was arrested, and the child was recovered; the state agency will work to reunite the girl with family members in Florida.
In the news
“Using the description and photographs from the license plate readers, police employed drones to locate the vehicle on West Main Street in Dothan.”
The excerpt is quoted word for word. The rest of this page paraphrases the same report, so names, dates and figures are the reporter’s or the agency’s, not ours. Where a report does not say something, we do not guess.
Context and caveats
- Authorities had not revealed any relationship between the woman and the child.
- Dothan police thanked the Houston County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Marshals Service for assistance.
License plate readers are one investigative tool among several. They flag vehicles and give investigators leads; officers, detectives and the public do the rest, and every lead still has to be verified. For how agencies govern the technology, see our policy and data-retention guide and the accuracy guide.
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Frequently asked questions
How did Dothan police find the vehicle?
They used the description and photographs from license plate readers and then employed drones to locate it on West Main Street.
Was the child safe?
Yes. The child was found in the vehicle and is in the custody of Alabama’s Department of Human Resources while family reunification is arranged.