Authorities tracked down a Jefferson City man charged with parental kidnapping, and he was arrested near the Utah/Nevada state line.
Thomas Chee, 54, is accused of ignoring contact from the child's mother and law enforcement regarding the location of the juvenile.
A Jefferson City Police Department probable cause statement states the mother of the 3-year-old girl reported her missing Friday night and alleged Chee had taken their daughter.
The mother had moved to Jefferson City in May from Las Vegas to be with the child and the girl had been in the custody of both parents since her birth.
The mother said Chee had contacted her Friday afternoon and said he picked up the girl from daycare. She also alleged Chee had said he would take the girl with him as he was going on a job interview in Jefferson City.
After several hours went by, the mother reported Chee and the girl did not return home and when she tried to call Chee, she could not get him to answer his phone.
Authorities said the mother told them Chee had threatened to take the child out of state in the past and there had been ongoing custody disputes.
A missing persons report was filed by JCPD for the child, and officers also tried to contact Chee, but with no success.
Eventually they pinged Chee's cellphone, which reportedly showed the phone was in the area of York, Nebraska, at 11:30 p.m. Friday.
Investigators learned Chee's mother lives in Santa Rosa, California, and they discovered, using online mapping, that York was along the most direct route to Santa Rosa.
About 7:30 p.m. Saturday, JCPD detectives tracked Chee to the area of Salt Lake City, along Interstate 80. Utah State Police and area law enforcement agencies were given a description of Chee's vehicle and an attempt to locate was issued for the missing juvenile.
About 9 p.m., a Utah state trooper spotted Chee's vehicle travelling on I-80 at the Utah/Nevada state line. Chee was stopped and taken into custody. The 3-year-old was with him and was taken into protective custody. She was unharmed.