CORNELIUS, N.C. — Thursday marks two years since missing Cornelius girl Madalina Cojocari was last seen in public.
“We really have mixed emotions -- when this case first started two years ago none of us thought we would be here today,” said Cornelius Police Chief David Baucom.
The last known video of her was taken around 5 p.m. on Nov. 21, 2022. It shows then 11-year-old Madalina getting off her school bus.
It took her parents three weeks to report her missing.
Both Madalina's mother - Diana Cojocari - and her stepfather - Christopher Palmiter - have spent time in jail for not reporting her missing. Both have said they do not know where Madalina is.
In September, Diana Cojocari was confirmed to have left the United States, according to a spokesperson for Homeland Security Investigations, though it's not known when she left the country. Diana Cojocari has been formally named as a suspect in the young girl's 2022 disappearance.
In a social media post in July, the Cornelius Police Department referred to Diana Cojocari for the first time publicly as a suspect. Never before in the time since the girl was last seen had a suspect been officially named in the case.
RELATED: Cornelius PD deputy chief says Diana Cojocari is a suspect in daughter Madalina's disappearance
Days after that post was made, Diana Cojocari posted to Facebook and appeared to indicate she was leaving the country. However, as only a suspect, criminal experts say police cannot prevent her from leaving the country.
M. Quentin Williams, a former FBI agent, said Diana Cojocari leaving the United States creates some more obstacles as investigators continue to try and find Madalina.
Diana Cojocari had been released from jail in May a day after pleading guilty to failing to report her daughter's disappearance. She had previously pleaded not guilty to the charge. Her release was possible because the maximum prison sentence is 24 months, minus time already served. At the time, Cojocari had spent 520 days in jail after being arrested in December 2022.
A jury found Palmiter guilty of failing to report the disappearance of Madalina earlier this year.
Neither Diana Cojocari nor Palmiter have ever been charged with anything other than the failure to report Madalina's disappearance.
Diana Cojocari moved to the United States from Moldova. Officials did not say specifically where she left for during her 2024 departure.
Two years later there are still many unanswered questions.
“We feel that Diana has some of those answers,” said Baucom. “We made every effort we could to make contact with her after her release, we have done several interviews. We still weren’t able to determine where Madalina was and she decided to return to her home country.”
Baucom said Diana maintains she does not to know where Madalina is. He also said there are no records that Madalina left or was taken out of the country.
“There’s no record of her leaving the country and we have not been able to verify that she is in Moldova,” said Baucom. “So, as far as we know she is here in the United States.”
For two years now, the Cornelius community and beyond have come together praying for her to be found.
"We just want to find the little girl and have justice," one Cornelius resident previously told WCNC Charlotte.
“It’s always challenging. We wanted a resolution to this case early on like everybody in this community and we have stayed the course,” said Baucom. “We always said from the very start that our goal is to find Madalina and we are not going to stop until we do.”
As of now, Diana is free and clear of any charges. As to whether any other charges could be filed against her, Baucom said that everything is still on the table.
WCNC Charlotte did ask if there was any work being done on age progression photos of Madalina. The department said that's not happening as of publication.
There is still a $25,000 reward being offered in this case.
Contact Jesse Pierre at jpierrepet@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
This interactive timeline will continue to update as more details emerge about the case: