Investigators searching for an 8-year-old California girl who has been missing for more than a month say they have found a child’s body in a San Joaquin Valley home.

Merced Police have not said if the child they found is Sophia Mason, who was last seen on February 10 in the Merced area, although KFSN reported that investigators said they were led to the home in the course of their investigation into Mason’s disappearance.

Police said they were contacted by the Hayward Police Department in the Bay Area earlier on Friday about the missing girl.

Hayward investigators said family members asked for a welfare check on Tuesday for Sophia and her mother, Samantha Johnson, saying they had not had contact since December.

BREAKING: Merced Police are investigating a homicide after the body of a child was found in this home. Detectives are not identifying the child, but say they were led to this home based on the investigation into the disappearance of an 8 year old girl. @ABC30 pic.twitter.com/PPBXuOr7DW

— Vanessa Vasconcelos (@VanessaABC30) March 12, 2022

Both police departments said that Johnson is currently in custody. KFSN said Friday that she was arrested Thursday night on several charges and gave inconsistent answers about the whereabouts of her daughter.

Jail records show that Johnson, 31, is being held in Alameda County on one count of obstructing a police officer and one count of corporal injury to a child with a $50,000 bail. She is scheduled for arraignment on March 15.

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[Featured image: Sophia Mason/Hayward Police Department]

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