A distraught mother is making a plea to New Yorkers to help find her missing daughter with autism after she vanished from her Roosevelt Island home last week.
Amanda Sadlier fought back tears as she recalled to amNewYork Metro the harrowing moment she realized that her child Markeysha had disappeared from their home on Nov. 1.
“We woke up a little bit late because it was a day off of school for our other kids on Friday and realized that Markeysha was not home,” Sadlier said. “She wasn’t in the apartment, she wasn’t in the backyard, she wasn’t in the gym.”
Markeysha is Sadlier’s 21-year-old adopted daughter who not only lives with autism but also cognitive disabilities, diabetes, ADHD, anxiety, and also recently underwent brain surgery.
Markeysha needs constant care, and her disappearance sent Sadlier into a spiral of fear — especially when she realized that her daughter had left her cellphone behind.
After searching the neighborhood, Sadlier and her husband Dan contacted the NYPD and filed a missing person’s report. Still, after a week of desperate searching with family, friends, and officers, Markeysha’s whereabouts remain unknown.
“She’s been without medications for almost a week. She’s also borderline cognitively disabled,” Sadlier said. “She’s had a very hard year with the brain surgery. She had been employed for a couple of years but just lost her job.”
Dan and Amanda Sadlier are pastors who preach at Mosaic Church at Chapel of the Good Shepherd on Roosevelt Island. They adopted Markeysha when she was 9 years old into their family and said they have strived to cultivate a loving, caring environment after they say she had a difficult early life.
The Sadliers and cops believe Markeysha had entered at the Roosevelt Island subway station, where the MTA recorded that she entered a turnstile with her MetroCard. Since then, the trail has gone cold.
Markeysha was last seen wearing black jeans, blue jacket and white sneakers while carrying a brown purse.
Due to her love of technology and her innocent nature, parents worry that she may have lured away from a person she met online.
Because Markeysha has been without medication for more than a week, family members are concerned that the time to find her alive is running out.
“We’re very much concerned for her safety. Her medical needs are absolutely a priority,” Amanda Sadlier said.
The distraught mother pleaded with New Yorkers to watch for her daughter in the subways, stores, and parks and to be aware that she may not be alone.
“My request to the public is when you ride the train, put your phone away and keep your eyes open if you think you see her and even if you’re wrong. I’d rather have you reach out,” Sadlier said. “Markeysha is a beautiful soul that brings so much joy and life to her family and her community.”
Anyone with information regarding Markeysha’s whereabouts can call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA). You can also submit tips online at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or on X (formerly Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
