In January 2017, before the later missing-person case that remains associated with her name in public databases, Maria Vasquez Lainez was the subject of an earlier missing juvenile notice in Frederick, Maryland. The Frederick Police Department reported that she had last been seen on January 14, 2017, in the area of her residence in the 1200 block of Rutledge Place. That earlier search ended with relief: detectives located Maria on January 31, 2017, and police said she was unharmed. The department thanked the public for helping locate her, and that January incident should be understood as separate from the later July 2017 disappearance.
Several months later, Maria Yaneth Vasquez, also identified in some police and public records as Maria Lainez Vasquez or Maria Vasquez Lainez, was reported missing again from Frederick. On July 7, 2017, the Frederick Police Department received a report of a missing person at approximately 2:00 p.m., and Detective Sean McKinney was later assigned as the lead investigator. Police said Maria was 14 years old, Hispanic, with black hair and brown eyes, about 5 feet tall, and approximately 100 pounds. She had last been seen in the 1200 block of Danielle Drive in Frederick, and at the time of the police notice her whereabouts were unknown. Authorities said it was possible she was staying with unidentified friends in the Frederick area.
Public missing-person summaries provide more detail about the circumstances surrounding the July 2017 disappearance. Maria was reportedly last seen at about 2:00 p.m. after leaving her home in the 1200 block of Danielle Drive following a disagreement with her mother. Authorities believed she may have left of her own accord and may have remained in Frederick, possibly staying with a friend. The Charley Project classifies the case as an endangered runaway and notes that Maria had run away once before in January 2017, but had been found safe about two weeks later, which aligns with the Frederick Police Department’s archived January update. In the July case, Maria was described as about 5 feet to 5 feet 1 inch tall and around 100 to 120 pounds, with pierced ears, and she was reportedly wearing a green short-sleeved shirt, blue jeans, blue sneakers, and small earrings when she was last seen.
Maria’s July 2017 disappearance was later preserved in national missing-person records. NamUs lists Maria Yaneth Vasquez as missing from Frederick, Maryland, with a date of last contact of July 7, 2017, and NCMEC case number 1327303. The continued presence of the July case in public missing-person databases distinguishes it from the January 2017 incident, which Frederick police explicitly marked as resolved when Maria was located unharmed. No online source found here states that the July 2017 missing-person case was resolved as Maria being found alive or deceased, so the public record should not treat the January recovery as a resolution of the July disappearance.
The story reflected in the available sources is one of a young girl whose life came to public attention twice in the same year, first through a January missing juvenile report that ended safely, and then through a July disappearance that remained far more uncertain in the public record. Maria was only 14, and the known details suggest a vulnerable teenager believed by authorities to possibly be somewhere nearby, perhaps with friends, while her family and community were left without a confirmed public answer. In overview, Maria Yaneth Vasquez was last seen on July 7, 2017, in Frederick, Maryland, after leaving her home in the 1200 block of Danielle Drive; the earlier January 2017 missing-person notice ended when she was located unharmed, but the later July 2017 case is the one still described in online missing-person records, centered on a young teenager from Frederick whose last known circumstances remain limited to a family disagreement, a possible stay with friends in the area, and a continuing need for reliable information.
Last Seen: Jul 07, 2017
