(PHILADELPHIA) — A suspect has been arrested in connection to the disappearance of a 23-year-old woman who was allegedly harassed by an unknown individual before she went missing. However, the search continues for the missing nursing assistant, Philadelphia police said.
Kada Scott was last seen by her mother on Oct. 4 when she was leaving for work at a nearby nursing home, police said last week. On Wednesday, police said Keon King, 21, has been charged with kidnapping “for his involvement” in the disappearance of Scott.
While King is in custody in connection to Scott’s disappearance, officials said “a lot of work” is still to be done in the investigation, and they are “still treating this as if Ms. Scott is still alive.”
“The No. 1 priority is locating Ms. Scott,” John M. Stanford, the first deputy commissioner for field operations at the Philadelphia Police Department, said on Wednesday.
Scott arrived at work on Oct. 4, but left prior to her shift’s completion, and has not been seen since, Philadelphia police Capt. John Craig said during a press conference last week. It was not clear what time Scott left work, but officials said her shift typically was from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Scott was reported missing to police on Oct. 5, with law enforcement saying they had “some concern, more so than usual” regarding her disappearance due to worrying phone calls she was receiving.
“In the days leading up to her disappearance, Ms. Scott related to her family and friends that an unknown individual or person had been harassing her via phone,” Craig said last week.
Officials were able to recover Scott’s vehicle, which was located in the parking lot of the nursing home where she worked, Craig said.
On Tuesday, police told ABC News the investigation was being led by the the Homicide Unit, but said they were not characterizing it as a homicide investigation.
The 23-year-old’s father, Kevin Scott, told ABC News the family remains confident “she’s gonna be with us as soon as possible.”
“It’s been difficult, extremely difficult. We keep faith that she’s OK and she’s going to be with us as soon as possible, she’s going to be found and hopefully no harm is done to her. I’m going to keep that positive vibe going,” Kevin Scott told ABC News.
ABC News’ Tommy Foster and Sabina Ghebremedhin contributed to this report.
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