By
Minyvonne Burke
-
NBC News
Oklahoma authorities announced Friday that they have arrested a second person in connection with the disappearance of a 4-year-old girl in the state.
Ivon Adams, 36, was arrested in Arizona.
Maricopa County jail records show he was booked Thursday on a fugitive from justice charge.
He is awaiting extradition to Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation stated in a post on the social networking site Facebook.
His arrest comes a day after the agency announced it had detained 31-year-old Alysia Adams.
The two detainees were described by authorities as the adults responsible for caring for Athena Brownfield, who was reported missing Tuesday after a postal worker found her 5-year-old sister wandering Cyril's alone.
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Athena Brownfield, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation
Alysia Adams was arrested by Grady County Sheriff's deputies and faces two counts of child neglect, the state Bureau of Investigation reported.
Athena's sister was found outside Alysia Adams' home, the agency said in a statement Thursday.
The minor is in the custody of state child protective services.
She did not require medical attention when found, according to agency spokesman Brook Arbeitman.
Penny Brownfield, Athena's paternal grandmother, said the girl's disappearance was "a huge blow".
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“I have to be strong for my kids,” she told NBC News during a phone call Friday from her home in Lawton, Oklahoma.
“It is affecting my children.
It's really affecting my oldest son, because they're his baby, which means they're my baby too."
The woman added that she felt desperate for information on Athena's whereabouts.
“She didn't just faint like that,” she stated.
Authorities have postponed garbage collection service in Cyril, a city located about 80 miles southwest of Oklahoma, so agents can continue to search for Athena.
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Arbeitman said Thursday night that officials remain optimistic.
"We're just following every lead, processing everything we can to see if that can help us locate her," he said.
Authorities asked residents with information or security camera video related to the incident to contact police as soon as possible.
Athena was last seen wearing a pink butterfly sweater and pink pants, according to a "Wanted" poster featuring her image.
Arbeitman specified that the little girl has "limited verbal abilities."