Missing Ballantyne Teen Found Safe After Being Held Captive in Georgia

CHARLOTTE, NC – A missing Ballantyne teen has been found alive after more than a year of searching. 17-year-old Haley Burns is back with family in Ballantyne.

“We’re elated for the family. It’s been a really rough year for them so it’s fantastic news,” says neighbor Steve Harkins.

Her mom posted a picture on Facebook as the two reunited Sunday.

“You always hold out hope but obviously they say the longer it goes on the less chance generally you’ll find somebody,” Harkins says.

It’s been 13 months since the teen left home in the middle of the night.

Family members tell WCCB Charlotte they believe Hailey, who has Aspergers and other special needs, was lured away by a man she met on the Internet.

FBI agents found her overnight at a home in Duluth, Georgia, an Atlanta suburb.

They arrested 31-year-old Michael Ren Wysolovski.

Family members tell WCCB Charlotte they believe he locked her in a room over the past year, but they recently moved.

Hailey was able to get a Wi-Fi connection from a nearby Starbucks.

A person she was chatting with online tipped off police and that’s how they tracked her down.

Wysolovski is locked up tonight with multiple charges, including aggravated sodomy, cruelty to children, and false imprisonment.

Neighbors near Hailey’s home in Ballantyne tell me they can’t imagine what the family has gone though.

“You might think you can imagine. Until it happens to you, I don’t think you really understand it,” says neighbor George Jenkins.

They’re just glad the family no longer has to worry.

“She was really a sweet kid and we’re just happy that she’s OK that she’s safe,” Jenkins says.