CHESAPEAKE, Va. — As many families gather for the Easter holiday, Joe Patterson desperately wants to find his daughter.
According to Chesapeake police, 16-year-old Destiny Ayala-Patterson was last seen leaving Indian River High School in a sedan around 1 p.m. on March 28.
No one has seen or heard from her since.
Police are asking for the public's help to locate her.
Meanwhile, her father wants answers.
"We don't really have any answer why she got into a vehicle. We don't have any answers as to why this person thought it was a good idea to come to a public school," said Patterson. "We don't know how she was able to leave the school that we entrust to send her to every Monday through Friday, hoping that she's safe there. And we don't know how she was able to walk off school grounds. We don't know why this was done, and we're just struggling to find answers right now."
Patterson called Destiny "a good kid," who plays on the JV basketball team at Indian River High School and made the honor roll one week before she disappeared.
He said his family is worried, and they are doing everything they can to locate Destiny.
Patterson said nothing is more important than bringing her home.
"Her whole family is looking for her. Everyone is concerned," he said. "Everybody wants you home and taken care of. We're all just really worried for you right now."
Chesapeake Police said Destiny was last seen wearing a green and tan blouse and blue jeans. She is a Hispanic female, 5 feet, 7 inches, and has brown hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to call the Chesapeake Police Department at (757) 382-6161 or the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.