KANSAS CITY, Mo. — UPDATE, 5:30 p.m.: The two children were found in Fairmount City, Illinois, and are in the process of being reunited with their mother, St. Charles police said.

The children’s father, 24-year-old Fernando Marez, is still a person of interest in the investigation, police said.

ORIGINAL | An Amber Alert was issued Friday in Missouri for two young children who were abducted in St. Charles, Missouri, and authorities believe the children and the suspect may be headed to the Kansas City area.

Fernando Marez, 3, and Alexia Marez, 1, were taken from the 2000 block of Santa Monica Street around 10:30 a.m., the Missouri State Highway Patrol said in a news release.

Authorities are looking for the father of the children, Fernando Marez, 24, who allegedly assaulted the children’s mother and threatened to kill one of the children before leaving the scene with another male and female in a vehicle.

St. Charles police said that Marez has family in the Kansas City area, and they believe he may be headed there.

The vehicle is a tan four-door passenger car with a partial Missouri or Illinois license plate number E15. It was last seen leaving westbound from the scene.

Marez is 5-feet-7 and weighs 145 pounds. He was wearing a black vest, blue T-shirt, dark blue jeans and Champion shoes, the Highway Patrol said. He has tattoos of the children's names on both arms.

Alexia has black hair and was wearing a white and pink flower onesie and blue pants. Fernando has black hair and was wearing a blue shirt and gray sweatpants. Both children are Hispanic.

Anyone with information should call 911 or the St. Charles Police Department at 636-949-3300.