The mother and stepfather of missing Madalina Kojokari “clearly” know more than they say, as it’s been over a month since 11-year-old Madalina was last seen in North Carolina. , investigators said.
Diana Kojokari, 37, and Christopher Palmiter, 60, were scheduled to appear at a hearing in Mecklenburg County Court on Wednesday, but the court was canceled. remained in prison custody.
In a Cornelius Police Department update, Capt. Jennifer Thompson called the situation “a serious case of a child whose parents clearly haven’t told us everything they know.”
In court Wednesday, a judge noted that Madalina’s mother and stepfather were ordered to surrender their passports as a condition of their release if they post bail.Cojocari’s bond was set at $250,000 and Palmiter’s It is set at $200,000.
Madalina Kojokari’s mother, from Cornelius, North Carolina, says she last saw her on Nov. 23, three weeks before she reported the 11-year-old girl missing from school.
Madalina’s mother Diana Kojokari (left), 36, and stepfather Christopher Palmiter, 60, were arrested on December 17. Traveled to Michigan on November 24th
Madalina Kojokari was last seen on November 21 and stepped off the school bus on November 23, her mother Diana Kojokari said.
Police reported that between 23 November and 15 December, the school contacted Diana Kojokari “several times” to report that her mother had reported the girl missing at school, police said. said.
Court documents released last week revealed Diana Kojokari told police she believed her husband was “endangering the family.”
Local police, working with the FBI and the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation, have been searching Madalina Kojokari for 12 days.
“I know everyone is asking a lot of questions,” Capt. Jennifer Thompson said in a video posted to Facebook on Wednesday.
“We have questions, and under our proper legal authority, we are doing everything we can to get those answers.”
“This is a serious case of a child whose parents have clearly not told us everything they know,” she said.
The update comes when Diana Kojokari and Palmiter were due to appear in court. The charges were filed under North Carolina law requiring the police to be notified within ‘time’.
They each face felony charges for failing to report their child’s disappearance to law enforcement.
Cojocari is held with a bond of $250,000 and Palimiter’s bond is set at $200,000.
In addition to surrendering his passport to pay bail, Parmiter will also be required to wear an electronic ankle-monitoring bracelet as part of his bail conditions, the judge announced in court, according to the Charlotte Observer. did.
Two women in furry brown Russian-style ushanka hats came to Kojokari’s hearing. However, women believed to be relatives of Kojokari, originally from the former Soviet republic of Moldova in Eastern Europe, shunned the media as they rushed out of the courtroom afterwards.
Police say Madalina was last seen getting off the school bus at her stop on November 21.
Madalina Kojokari’s mother says she last saw her on November 23rd.
Cornelius Police Lieutenant Jennifer Thompson called the situation “a serious case of a child whose parents fail to reveal everything they know.”
Captain Thompson provided an update on the search for Madalina on Tuesday.
“Investigators have developed and tracked about 250 leads in the 12 days they’ve been searching for the girl,” she said.
“These leads extend across state lines and around the world.”
“We interviewed hundreds of people in North Carolina and other states and even around the world,” she added.
Thompson also said police had knocked on about 245 homes in the Victoria Bay neighborhood around Madalina Kojokari’s home and had “hunted out” hours of surveillance video from local businesses.
“Investigators received multiple search warrants for Madalina’s home in order to legally gather any and all evidence to find her,” Thompson said.
Thompson said, “One of the challenges with this incident, simply put, was that we weren’t told she was gone. It was a three-week delay.
Last week, the FBI released surveillance video. Investigators said the girl showed her stepping off a school bus on Nov. 21.
On the day she disappeared, Kojokari, 37, got into an argument with her husband, Christopher Parmiter, 60, who angrily drove to Michigan that night.
Three days later, on November 26, Palmiter returned to his home in North Carolina, and Kojokari told him that a girl was missing from his home in Cornelius, a town just north of Charlotte.
According to reports, Kojokari’s relatives in Moldova, where she was born, urged her to tell the police that the girl was missing, but Kojokari resisted.
Just before Christmas, the FBI released a handwritten letter “from Madalina’s family” asking for help in finding her.
They did not specify who the relatives were or which side of the family they were on. He said he didn’t know the person he wanted.
“We love Madalina and are shocked by this situation,” the family’s letter said.
“This is something no child or family should ever have to endure.”
The author describes Madalina as “a beautiful, smart, kind and loving 11-year-old girl with a great future.”
“We are desperate to find her now. She needs all of our help.
“We ask for your continued active support in order to widely share Madalina’s posters and photos.”
At 11:30 a.m. on November 24, Diana Kojakari checked on Madalina and claimed she was not in her bedroom.
The letter said days after she went missing, DailyMail.com said the family had been seen setting fires in their backyard for days, setting sofa cushions and other objects on fire. It came when I discovered
Neighbors recalled seeing flames and smoke rising from the yard of their Victoria Bay Drive home in late November and called the Cornelius, North Carolina, police and fire department.
Cornelius Fire Chief Gerry Barbie confirmed to DailyMail.com that he had reported the fire, but declined to discuss further details.
A neighbor who saw investigators search his home told DailyMail.com he spent hours outside.
“They took all sorts of samples from the fire pit area,” he said. “I think they were trying to figure out if they burned any material there.”
“It’s disgusting to know that something like this happened in your neighborhood,” he added.
Another neighbor told DailyMail.com that no one knew the girl was missing, so a fire was not suspected at the time.
“If you don’t get the context of a girl going missing, it’s like a hamburger with nothing on the phone,” he said. “At the time, it was a fire safety or permit type issue.”
“As part of our normal investigation process, we are expanding our search outside the home where Madalina was last seen and now includes Lake Cornelius,” police said.
Investigators searched Madalina’s family home, claiming her mother was the last sighting of Madalina.
On December 12, the school resource officer from Bailey Middle School visited Kojokari’s home with a counselor. There was no answer at the door so they left a “truancy packet”.
On December 14, Kojokari called the school counselor and told him he would bring Madalina to school the next day.
At that meeting, Kojokari told the resource officer that Madalina had actually been missing for weeks and was last seen entering her room to sleep around 10 p.m. on November 23.
Kojokari also told school officials that she and her husband had an argument that night and drove to her parents’ house in Michigan to retrieve their belongings.
At 11:30 am on November 24, Kojakari went to check on Madalina and found that she was no longer in her bedroom.
When Parmitah returned at 7:00 pm on November 26, Kojakari said he asked police if he knew where Madalina was, but he said he did not.
After being arrested on December 17, the two were held in the Mecklenburg County Detention Center.
Police searched their home thoroughly and were seen digging the front yard with a shovel. It’s not clear if they found anything interesting.
Madalina is 4 feet 10 inches tall, has dark brown hair, and weighs about 90 pounds.
She was last seen wearing jeans, pink, purple and white Adidas shoes, a white T-shirt and jacket.
Anyone with information should call the Cornelius Police Department at 704-892-7773.