NATCHEZ – A missing juvenile was found safe Sunday in Adams County, and a Brookhaven man was arrested after deputies recovered a stolen firearm, according to the Adams County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded shortly after midnight Oct. 11 to a home on Duck Pond Road after a juvenile girl was reported missing. Authorities said deputies gathered information from family members, checked possible locations and alerted other law enforcement personnel.
Around 12:50 p.m. that day, a patrol deputy spotted a red Chevrolet Camaro stopped along Lower Woodville Road. While checking on the vehicle, the deputy recognized the passenger as the missing juvenile.
Investigators said the driver, identified as 23-year-old Cortez Hunt of Brookhaven, had reportedly picked up the juvenile in Brookhaven and brought her back to Adams County.
During the investigation, deputies received information about a firearm inside the vehicle. A handgun was recovered from a backpack and later confirmed through law enforcement databases to have been reported stolen.
Hunt was arrested and charged with possession of a stolen firearm. He was taken to the Adams County Jail without incident.
The juvenile was safely recovered and taken to an appropriate juvenile facility.
Sheriff Travis Patten praised patrol deputies and investigators for their work in locating the juvenile and recovering the firearm.
The investigation remains active, and the sheriff’s office said additional charges are possible as investigators continue gathering evidence.
Hunt is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
