Police ‘have no idea’ where missing infant is; slain mother identified

For a wrap-up of Friday's developments, see this story: Police: Missing Sophia may be in hands of someone claiming infant as their own

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UPDATED: 5:17 P.M.: Wichita Police Chief Gordon Ramsay said “we have no idea” where 7-day-old Sophia Gonzales is, a day after she went missing following the shooting death of her mother.

“No tip is too small” as the hunt for the infant continues, Ramsay said. The FBI is working “hand-in-hand” with Wichita police and has set up a tip line for people to use: 1-800-CALL FBI (225-5324).

Sophia’s mother, 27-year-old Laura Abarca-Noguedo, was found shot to death Friday. Her boyfriend found her when he returned home from work shortly before 3:30 p.m. at their apartment at 215 S. Brunswick. After a quick search of the apartment for the baby, he called 911.

An “all hands on deck” search and investigation have failed to find the child, Ramsay said. Even the smallest detail could prove significant, he said in urging residents to call.

UPDATED: 12:25 P.M.: Police say Laura Abarca-Nogueda is the 27-year-old mother killed Thursday in her west Wichita apartment.

The department identified her Friday afternoon in an e-mailed news release.

Abarca-Nogueda’s live-in boyfriend found her shot to death inside the apartment, 215 N. Brunswick, after coming home from work shortly before 3:30 p.m.

Authorities are searching for the couple’s newborn daughter, Sofia Victoria Gonzales Abarca, who went missing sometime between 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Thursday. An FBI response team that specializes in child abductions has been called in to help find her.

UPDATED 10:20 A.M.: Wichita police gave no new details on the killing of a 27-year-old Wichita mother on Friday morning but said that the FBI has been called in to assist in finding her missing newborn.

The baby, Sofia Victoria Gonzales Abarca, was abducted, Lt. Todd Ojile said, and is considered endangered. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call 911 or 1-800-CALL FBI.

An Amber Alert has not been issued, Sgt. Nikki Woodrow said, because police have no suspects in her abduction at this time. Suspect information is required for an Amber Alert to become active.

Ojile said the live-in boyfriend of Sofia's mother found her shot to death after he arrived at their apartment at 215 N. Brunswick shortly before 3:30 p.m. The mother, who has not been identified yet by police, was pronounced dead at the scene about 10 minutes later.

Police say the last time the mother was known to be alive was shortly before 1 p.m. Thursday.

Original story, posted 7:04 a.m. Friday:

Police are still searching for a missing 7-day-old girl and a suspect in connection with the missing baby and the girl’s mother, who was found shot to death in her west Wichita home Thursday evening.

Sgt. Nikki Woodrow, of the Wichita Police Department, said the police department did not have any updates about the case Friday morning. Police are planning to discuss the case during the agency’s regular news briefing with reporters Friday. That starts at 10 a.m. and will be broadcast live on the police department’s Facebook page.

The baby’s name is Sofia Victoria Gonzales Abarca. Anyone who has information about the incident is being asked to call 911 or local authorities, police have said.

“She is considered missing and endangered,” Woodrow said of the infant. “We have no leads where she’s at.”

An Amber Alert had still not been issued Friday as of 8:30 a.m., because the case does not include suspect information to share with the public – an Amber Alert criteria. Woodrow said police are working closely with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and if a suspect is determined, an Amber Alert will be issued immediately.

The girl’s 27-year-old mother was found dead in an apartment in the 200 block of North Brunswick, near Maple and Ridge Road, when a relative came by shortly before 3:30 p.m. Thursday, police said. She had last been heard from at around noon.

Investigators want to talk to anyone who has any kind of relationship with the victim, Woodrow said.

The child’s father is not a suspect in the woman’s death, Woodrow said. Police last night had been searching for person of interest in a 1997 purple Cadillac who recently interacted with the slain woman and was thought to have information that might aid in the investigation. But he and the car have since been found.

Contributing: Stan Finger, Bryan Horwath and Gabriella Dunn of The Eagle

This story was originally published November 18, 2016 at 10:38 AM with the headline "Police ‘have no idea’ where missing infant is; slain mother identified."