Police Pursue Leads In Tacoma Kidnap Case

Zina Linnik has been missing since the Fourth of July. With every day that passes, her family grows more desperate.

Police confirm the 12-year-old was kidnapped by a stranger in an alley behind her home in Tacoma, Wash. "There is no more tragic event for a family than the taking away of one of its children," says Tacoma Police Chief Don Ramsdell.

Zina's father says he heard her scream, as she was pushed into a grey van. He gave a partial license plate description to police.

On Tuesday, police raided a home 10 miles away, and found a grey van with license plates similar to what Zina's father described. They found a "girl's undergarment."

The man they've detained is a registered sex offender, but he has not been charged.

"We're pursuing other leads but we have no other person of interest," says Mark Fulghum of the Tacoma Police Department.

The latest tip led investigators to a nearby state forest. Rescue dogs and three dozen volunteers combed the area. However, Fulghum says the search in the mountains turned up very little, "if not nothing."

The searching will continue, but residents fear what might be found.

The Linnik family came to America from the Ukraine, looking for a better life. Now, a daughter is missing, and it has been a week with no answers. "The family's worried. Hopefully everything goes fine," says Zina's brother Stan.

If you have any information about this case, call the Tacoma Police Department at 253-830-6508.