Wyckoff students had planned to run away, police say

Two Wyckoff middle school girls who were reported missing Wednesday, setting off a 12-hour search, had planned to run away from home, according to police.

The 13-year-old students were seen leaving Eastern Christian Middle School about 3:15 p.m. Wednesday, according to alerts sent out by Wyckoff police and Eastern Christian. They were eventually found at 3:50 a.m. Thursday.

No one else was involved in their disappearance and the girls "were planning to run away," according to a statement released by Wyckoff Lt. Joseph Soto.

"We have located them and they are being turned over to the care of their parents," the department posted on its Facebook page.

The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office assisted in the investigation.

"Both agencies continued to work throughout the night aggressively pursuing all leads and interviewing numerous persons," Soto's statement said.

Wyckoff police asked for people to respect the families' privacy.

Eastern Christian thanked the police for the help locating the students.

"We are thankful to the entire EC family and the thousands of friends, family, and concerned citizens who prayed for the safety and well being of the girls and who helped us spread the news alert. We are grateful for your concern and prayers," the school posted to Facebook.

The middle school is located at 518 Sicomac Ave. in Wyckoff.

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