The man Dania Hernandez was with, Lance Jyrkinen, 18, remained in police custody in Philadelphia.
HAMILTON -- Dania Hernandez's family is thankful for the efforts of township police and the numerous agencies that assisted them in locating the township teenager, her sister said Thursday.
Hernandez, 13, disappeared Monday after leaving school and police found her Wednesday night in Philadelphia, with an 18-year-old Kentucky man who was arrested on a child endangerment charge.
Lance Jyrkinen "We are so very grateful for the Hamilton police department and all of the agencies involved in the search," Dania's sister Corina Hernandez said.
"We are thankful for the responsiveness of family friends and strangers that cared deeply about finding her. Please respect our wish for our privacy during this sensitive time," Corina Hernandez said.
Lance Jyrkinen, the man Dania was with, remained in custody in Philadelphia Thursday, awiaiting an extradition hearing to New Jersey, Philadelphia police said.
Hamilton police have charged Jyrkinen with endangering the welfare of child.
Hamilton police said Thursday that Dania and Jyrkinen were detained at the intersection of 16th and Walnut streets in the city's Rittenhouse Square neighborhood.
Jyrkinen is from Owensboro, Kentucky, but he'd recently obtained an apartment in the 800 block of South Broad Street in Trenton, but had not yet moved in, Hamilton police spokesman Lt. Rich Mastropolo said.
The investigation into Dania's disappearance and her time with Jyrkinen, is an ongoing investigation, Mastropolo said.
On Tuesday, in alerts and bulletins, police had said Dania was believed to be with Jyrkinen.
The two appeared to have connected through social media and were seen together in Hamilton Monday after school, police had said.
Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.