Camelback Moving crew saves toddler at QuikTrip
Valley Movers Turn QuikTrip Stop Into Heroic Rescue
Most people stopping at a QuikTrip on a Saturday morning are thinking about coffee and snacks. The crew from Camelback Moving had those same priorities on Feb. 22 — until a gas station security guard changed everything.
Foremen Ralph Vollmert and Kevin Place were doing their usual morning routine near 27th Avenue and Thomas Road in Phoenix when they overheard the security guard on the phone with police. He had spotted a woman and toddler matching the description from an active Amber Alert issued the day before for 2-year-old Kehlani Rogers.
The little girl had disappeared from her family's Avondale home near 118th Avenue and Thomas Road on Feb. 21. Her parents had been letting 23-year-old Marina Noriega, a transient acquaintance, stay the night. When morning came, both Noriega and the toddler were gone. An Amber Alert went out immediately.
The Camelback Moving crew didn't hesitate. Recognizing that their 28-to-30-foot-long moving trucks were basically the perfect vehicle containment system, they maneuvered their rigs to box in Noriega's car. She was trapped with nowhere to go.
Phoenix Police arrived within minutes, took Noriega into custody without a struggle, and reunited little Kehlani with her very relieved parents. Noriega was charged with third-degree felony custodial interference. Court documents later revealed prosecutors noted she admitted to smoking methamphetamine the day before, and was held on a $250,000 bond.
Noriega had reportedly told detectives that Kehlani was her long-lost daughter — a claim she eventually walked back without explanation.
Camelback Moving President Chad Olsen noted this was the first time the company had blocked someone in and had the entire city cheering them on for it. The company recently started human-trafficking awareness training for employees — timing that feels anything but coincidental.
The Amber Alert system worked. The movers paid attention. A 2-year-old is home safe. That's the Valley looking out for its own.
Sources: FOX 10 Phoenix | FOX 10 Amber Alert Report