A determined Dutch teenager who was stopped by welfare authorities from trying to become the youngest person to sail singlehanded around the world has gone missing from her father's home, police said on Sunday.
Police spokesman Bernhard Jens said relatives in the city of Utrecht had reported Laura Dekker, 14, missing on Friday and authorities in nearby countries had been alerted to her disappearance and asked to monitor airports.
Jens added that Dekker's boat was believed to be moored at its usual place, but she had left her father's home.
"We are concerned because she is 14 years old and she has to come home," Jens said.
Dutch public broadcaster NOS said Dekker had left a letter for her father — whom she lives with — before disappearing, but did not reveal its contents.
The broadcaster quoted a family spokeswoman as saying Dekker's father did not know where she was.
Born on her parents' boat in New Zealand, Dekker spent the first four years of her life at sea and had intended to start a two-year solo voyage around the world on September 1 when she was still 13.
Her plans had captured media attention, but a court blocked her departure and placed her under state supervision, saying the trip posed risks to Dekker's safety.
Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant said Dekker had withdrawn €3,500 ($5,000) from her bank account, but police could not confirm this.
Child welfare authorities were not available for comment and a lawyer representing the teenager referred inquiries to a family spokeswoman, who did not return phone calls.
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