An arrest has been made in the case of missing teenager Emmarae Gervasi who was found alive on a boat after ’26 days of hell’.
Francis Buckheit, 65, was arrested on charges of rape and kidnapping in connection with Emmarae’s case, his lawyer Danielle Marie Papa confirmed: according to Patch.
The 14-year-old was located Friday afternoon by her father Frank Gervasi aboard a large boat just off Main Street in Islip, Long Island, after he received an anonymous tip about her whereabouts.
The teen, from East Patchogue in Suffolk County, had been missing since December 9 after she went to retrieve some belongings from a Jeep outside her Tyrrell Street home.
‘I found her myself before the police arrived. It was the end of 26 days of hell to see her alive in my arms. It was a gift from God. I can’t describe the feeling I had when I grabbed her,” Frank said News 12.
On Monday, Buckheit entered a not guilty plea in First District Court in Central Islip to charges of rape, kidnapping and acting in a manner harmful to a child, court records show.
His day of arrest is listed as January 3, the same day Emmarae was discovered. Buckheit is being held without bail and is due back in court Thursday morning, records show.
After being found safe, Emmarae is now recovering in hospital and the case remains an active investigation.
Francis Buckheit, 65, was arrested and charged in connection with the disappearance of Emmarae Gervasi, 14, who was found on a boat in Islip, Long Island on Friday
She was located by her father Frank Gervasi aboard a large boat just off Main Street after he received an anonymous tip about her whereabouts after ’26 days of hell’
Her family was concerned after her sudden disappearance, as Frank previously told DailyMail.com that before she got home, the last time he spoke to his daughter, she asked him what he was making for dinner.
While trying to get something from a car outside her family home, she was seen getting into a dark-colored vehicle without a coat or shoes.
Security cameras recorded her knocking at a motel in Bohemia the next day, but then she disappeared again.
In recent weeks, Frank said he has been following up on some leads and working closely with the Suffolk County Police Department.
Less than 24 hours after she disappeared, he said he received a tip that she was walking aimlessly along a long stretch of road in Bohemia until, he said, she “completely disappeared without a trace.”
‘I’m afraid she’s being held against her will. I know she’s with someone and they convince her to stay, or won’t let her leave, or worse, she could be dead by now.”
On Monday, Buckheit entered a not guilty plea in First District Court in Central Islip to charges of rape, kidnapping and dealing in a mansion harmful to a child.
He added: ‘I won’t stop looking until I find her.’
Friends and family joined the search, along with community members, to find Emmarae.
A search was also conducted in New York State using cadaver dogs and police helicopters, but fortunately no body was found.
Frank himself advocated for news on social media and searched for clues to his daughter’s disappearance while driving around Long Island.
In a video posted to Facebook on Saturday morning, Frank thanked everyone who helped in the search for his girl.
‘She’s home. She’s in a facility and she’s getting the help she needs and she’s safe,” he said with relief.
“I would like to thank the community for all the support you have given us. Post all videos, push all content, hand out flyers, donate your time to search for my missing girl. It’s those things that will help bring other kids home.
‘Yesterday I received an anonymous tip and I would like to thank that person for reporting it and providing information about my daughter. The call I got was that she was on a boat in Islip. I tracked it myself and went there to check it out.
Her family were concerned after her sudden disappearance on December 9, as Frank (pictured) previously told DailyMail.com when he last spoke to his daughter she asked him what he was making for dinner
After being found safe, Emmarae is now recovering in hospital and the case remains an active investigation
‘I rushed into the boat and got my daughter back. She was saved and alive. I believe it was perseverance that brought her home,” Frank said.
The concerned father went on to tell New 12 that he said Emmarae ran off with someone she knew, but then became afraid to come back home “because of the consequences.”
He also believes she was picked up by a random man who took her to a caravan park before being transferred to the boat where she was being held.
Emmarae’s mother Melissa Dervay said a “weight was lifted from my body” when the intense search ended.
“The moment I heard her voice and knew she was okay, I felt a weight lift off my body,” Dervay said. Greater Long Island.
Worried father believes Emmarae left with someone she knew but then became afraid to come back home ‘because of the consequences’
‘I’ve been so tense these past four weeks, silently fighting a battle. Now I’m elated. I feel light and I just want to scream, ‘She’s fine. She has been found.’
While she was missing, Frank said he started receiving strange phone calls from unknown numbers, and the voice on the other end sounded like his daughter’s.
“She said ‘I love you’ and I said ‘Emma?’” he explained, but the line quickly went dead and he couldn’t trace the number.
He even offered a $10,000 reward to anyone who could help him bring his daughter home.
Suffolk County police have since seized the large boat as evidence.
DailyMail.com has contacted the Suffolk County Police Department and the District Attorney’s Office for comment.