A dive team has found the body of a 7-year-old girl who went missing from her home on Douglas Lake. Serenity Kinsey was the subject of an Amber Alert issued on Thursday morning. Her family contacted authorities around 5:00 AM when they discovered she was missing from their home along Indian Creek Road in Jefferson County.
According to Jefferson County deputies, the Kinseys live alongside the lake. Sheriff Jeff Coffey reported that Serenity, who was described as autistic and non-verbal, had apparently wandered out of her house late Wednesday night, a behavior that had occurred before. Family members saw her inside the home sometime after midnight, but when they woke up, they realized she was gone.
Search efforts included the use of drones, helicopters, and collaboration with other law enforcement departments in East Tennessee. A K-9 unit ultimately led a deputy to the area of a dock on the lake, where her body was found around 11:00 AM.
