Police search for leads in Fernley kidnapping

After receiving several phone calls late into Saturday night, investigators are focusing their attention on Southern California in their search for 8-year-old Lydia Bethany-Rose Rupp, taken from her Fernley home Friday.

Capt. Jeff Page of the Lyon County Sheriff's Office said they have "strong leads" suggesting that sex-offender Fernando Peons Aguero, 47, is in the San Diego area. An Amber Alert was issued Friday night.

"We are hoping to have a whole lot more information today," he said."Our biggest concern is that he'll get to Mexico."

Aguero, aka Fernando Ayala, aka Fernando Pons, was convicted in Los Angeles for lewd and lascivious behavior with a child under 14 in 1985, served a year in prison and was released. He is an Hispanic male between 5-feet 10-inches and 6-feet 1-inch tall, weighing between 145 to 175 pounds.He has a slim build and brown hair and brown eyes.

He has a mustache and is known to wear a NASCAR jacket. He was driving a bluish-silver 2001 Kia Rio four-door sedan with no plates.

Rupp is 4-feet, 9-inches tall, 85 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes with a fair complexion. She has scars from a dog bite on her cheeks.

Rupp's mother met Aguero at a church function in April. He had since moved into their home as a roommate.

He dropped the mother off at work Friday around 5:30 a.m, but called at noon to say he could not pick her up.

The mother returned home to find Aguero and her daughter both gone. He had taken with them the child's birth certificate, social security card and all photographs from the home, as well as the brown cocker spaniel.

A warrant has been issued for Aguero's arrest on charges of first-degree kidnapping and bail is set at $1 million.

This is the second Amber Alert to be issued out of Lyon County. The first, in 2004, resulted in the children being recovered. In Nevada, 25 Amber Alerts have been issued and 23 of those children were located. The other two were taken to Mexico.

The Lyon County Sheriff's Office is working with the Nevada Department of Public Safety, California Highway Patrol, National Missing & Exploited Children, Child Find and the FBI.

Anyone with information should call (775) 463-6620 or (775) 575-3383.