By ERIN MATHEWS

Salina Journal

A 17-year-old Lehigh girl who Marion County authorities believe was taken from her home against her will was found unharmed in Hiawatha on Thursday morning, and a 21-year-old Texas man she was with was taken into custody.

Marion County sheriff's deputies were on the way to Brown County on Thursday afternoon to pick up Tara Renee Simhiser, who had been missing since she was reported as a runaway juvenile Tuesday afternoon, Marion County Undersheriff David Huntley said.

Although she was initially thought to have run away, further investigation led authorities to believe she may have been forced to leave in the company of Rojelio Hernandez, 21, of Texas. Hernandez was taken into custody without incident and will be brought back to Marion County for questioning, Huntley said.

According to a statement from Marion County Sheriff Robert Craft, Hernandez may face charges in both Brown and Marion counties.

Simhiser was at a bank in Hiawatha attempting to get money when a bank teller recognized her as the missing girl and called Hiawatha police, Huntley said. Hernandez was apprehended nearby where he was waiting for her in his car, he said.

"He's in custody, and she will be en route back home before too long," Huntley said Thursday afternoon.

About 15 minutes after Simhiser was found, Hiawatha police stopped a Honda Accord driven by Hernandez, who had befriended the girl's family about two weeks ago, Craft said.

Authorities issued an Amber Alert around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday but deactivated it about six hours later. A spokeswoman for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation said the alert was deactivated to correspond with the end of a "news cycle" and didn't mean that the teen had been found.

Visited state high schools

Hernandez was identified as the same person who had gone into a number of Kansas high schools in the past three weeks trying to enroll. He first came to the attention of law enforcement three weeks ago after being identified on surveillance cameras at a school in Riley County.

Police said he went into the school posing as a potential transfer student and left quickly when confronted by school officials.

He also was sighted at schools in Geary County, Marion County and in Wichita around the same time.

"He showed up at three of our high schools," said Susan Arensman, spokeswoman for the Wichita School District. "He acted kind of weird, but he never went into the school itself. He stayed in the office."

An Olympic wrestler?

Arensman said the man didn't try to interact with students or do anything "overly suspicious," though he did claim to be an Olympic wrestler.

"He tried to enroll one time," she said. "He also said he was a college recruiter or that he wanted to work with the wrestling team."

In many instances, school officials say the man walked away when his stories were questioned.

Craft said he initially considered Simhiser a runaway until deputies Wednesday were told that the Texas man had committed some type of violence against her Monday. The Amber Alert was issued soon after he received that information.

Hernandez was arrested on charges of driving on a suspended license and aiding and abetting a runaway. Craft said he may face other charges in Marion County.

nThe Associated Press contributed to this story.

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