- Paislee Shultis, who was reported missing in 2019, was found in a stairwell at her grandfather's home on Tuesday.
- Police believe her family abducted her after they lost custody of her in 2019.
A family accused of abducting a six-year-old girl and hiding her in a stairwell kept a bedroom for her but told police it was only for in case she was found, CBS New York reported.
Paislee Shultis, who was reported missing in 2019, was found alive in a sealed area under the stairwell of her grandfather's home in Saugerties,
Officials believe Shultis was kidnapped by her biological parents, Kimberly Cooper and Kirk Shultis Jr., in 2019 after they lost custody of her and her sister. The reason for the loss of custody is not immediately clear.
The family had kept Shultis in her grandfather's home — 150 miles away from where she lived with her biological parents — and hid her and her mother in the stairwell every time police came to search the house, Saugerties Police Chief Joseph Sinagra told CBS New York.
Police searched the property on several occasions in the past, but Shultis' father and grandfather had always denied that she and her mother were there, Sinagra told CBS New York.
The family had a separate bedroom for Shultis, but told police they only kept it for in case she was found, Sinagra said.
Describing the room to CBS New York, Sinagra said: "On the wall, it said 'Paislee.' There were clothing items there, it appeared that someone had been sleeping in the bed and somebody had been using the bedroom, and of course, the father and the grandfather said, no, that they had set that room up like that so that if Paislee was ever found, she had a place to come back to."
A neighbor of Shultis' grandfather told CBS New York they had never seen the girl.
Though the six-year-old was found to be in good health, police said they were concerned about how long she was isolated.
"We are pretty certain that she probably wasn't receiving proper medical attention," Sinagra told CBS New York. "Obviously, the family just couldn't take her to a doctor because she was a reported missing person."
"The other concern is you have a child that doesn't write or read because they didn't have the opportunity to go to school. They will now," he added.
After the discovery, Shultis was returned to her legal guardian, whose identity was not made public.
The girl's father and grandfather were charged with one count each of felony custodial interference in the first degree and misdemeanor endangering the welfare of a child, NBC News reported.
Her mother was charged with custodial interference in the second degree and misdemeanor endangering the welfare of a child, per NBC