Mother of missing Farmington teen Bailey Monnens-Dahl fears she's left the area: "Like finding a needle in a haystack"

Bailey Monnens-Dahl, 14, has been missing from her Farmington, Minnesota, home for five days.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension set out an alert and investigators are on the case.

"It's been horrible. It's like finding a needle in a haystack. I have nothing to go on," said Nicole Monnens, Monnens-Dahl's mother. 

She says her teenage daughter went missing in the overnight hours. Monnens says her daughter has autism, and has run away in the past. But she's never done it overnight.

Farmington police are asking downtown residents to check their surveillance cameras, but Monnens-Dahl's mother says she doesn't even think she's in town anymore. She's worried she met someone online.

"I'm afraid that it's an adult, you know, she is very vulnerable," said Monnens. "Somebody could manipulate her, making her think that this is a possible boyfriend or a friend."

Police earlier on Tuesday took computers from Monnens' home. The FBI wanted to go through the teenager's search history, looking at what sites she had frequented, and if it could give investigators a lead.

Monnens asked authorities if an organized search party would be helpful, but they said they weren't sure where to search. She's hoping that word of mouth will help reveal new clues.

Monnens says she learned her daughter was spotted a few days ago at Sun Ray Mall in St. Paul.

Anyone with information is asked to call Farmington police.