Family searching for missing MHS student

A Maricopa High School student left class Thursday and jumped into a blue sports car that drove away.

The student, Maeva McGuire, 17, told staff at the RAM Academy she was leaving with her uncle, but the male driver was not a relative, Carly Hall, her aunt and guardian, said Friday afternoon.

Hall said RAM Academy has a hands-free policy so staffers could not keep her from getting in the car willingly. She remains missing and her family has not heard from her and has no way to track her whereabouts.

Maeve has blonde hair and weighs about 95 pounds.

Hall said she does not know the identity of the driver, the make of the new-looking car nor the tag number. She immediately reported the incident to police, who are investigating.

“I have no idea,” she said in a phone call, her voice quavering. “I don’t have any firsthand information.”

Maeva is the daughter of Hall’s twin sister who lives out of state. Now living with Hall, she was accepted about two weeks ago to RAM Academy, an alternative school for Maricopa High School students who are behind in their coursework. It is run by Assistant Principal Stephen Ybarra.

It has been a challenging situation, said Hall, a U.S. Army veteran.

According to Hall, police are looking at video from two surveillance cameras on school property in an effort to identify the car. She said she was told the video was not high-resolution and police were trying to manipulate the video to make identification easier.

“The Maricopa Unified School District is committed to working with law enforcement and will provide any information we can to support their ongoing efforts,” a spokeswoman said Friday afternoon.

Hall, who helps run a local Facebook group, immediately posted information and photos of Maeva in her group, and others shared them in additional Facebook groups in town to try and spread her image far and wide.

So far, that effort has not produced any helpful information.

“We haven’t heard anything all day today,” Hall said. “It’s not looking real good.”

Anybody with information about Maeva’s whereabouts should call 911 or the Maricopa Police Department at 520-568-3673.