A Texas sports reporter that went missing this weekend has been found by Houston Police.
Courtney Roland, 29, a college sports reporter who covers Texas A&M football, disappeared Saturday evening after covering a local football camp.
Reports at first did not seem very promising. Roland texted a friend that night that a suspicious man in a blue truck was following her. That was the last anyone had heard directly from her.
Later that night, her mother received a nonsensical text from Roland’s phone that read, “Hello the owner of this phone Courtney. I am buying an iPad.”
The search for Roland grew fast, and many took to Twitter using the hashtag #HelpFindCourtney to spread the word. Even Texas governor Greg Abbott joined in.
Steve Roland, Courtney’s father, said her family was overwhelmed by the support of the community to find his daughter. “We have strong faith in God, and he’s in control,” he said.
As Sunday passed, reports of sightings began to trickle in near The Galleria mall in Houston. At 2 p.m. she was reported to be seen at the mall and then again around midnight at a Walgreens near the mall.
At 11 p.m., her purse was found on the second floor of the mall with an iPad, computer, and credit cards still inside it.
Early Monday morning, her Jeep was found parked by an Ethan Allen Store near the mall.
Then at 7 a.m., she was spotted walking under a nearby overpass, and not long after that, police found her at a Chick-fil-A down the road.
Apart from a few bumps and bruises, Roland was in good physical condition. Mentally, however, she seemed to be disoriented. “She seems pretty confused about everything,” said police.
UPDATE: Our officers have found Ms. Roland in the Galleria area. She appears unharmed. She’ll be taken to an area hospital for an evaluation. We are not providing the location where she was found or hospital at this time. More info to follow. #HouNews https://twitter.com/houstonpolice/status/950355732393791488 …
Latest: After seeing Ms. Roland’s case in the news this morning, a passerby called us about 8:15am, stating Ms. Roland was under an overpass at the 610 West Loop at Richmond. Our officers arrived, confirmed it was her and arranged she be checked at an area hospital. #HouNews https://twitter.com/houstonpolice/status/950375440065187840 …
Authorities believe that a bad reaction to medication caused her to become confused and disoriented as she wandered around the mall for over a day.
“We believe she was looking for her phone, but because she was in a confused state, she wasn’t thinking straight,” said Capt. Mark Lentini of the Houston Police. “She came back to the Galleria area, parked her car, and wandered off.”
Thanks to the help of everyone who spread the word of her disappearance, Roland did not stay missing for too long. Her family’s prayers were answered, and she was found safe and sound.
In related news, a woman in Illinois also went missing after becoming lost and confused. Read the full story in the next article below.