Family comes to South Florida to help search for missing Doral woman, daughter

Family last spoke to missing family members Monday morning

DORAL, Fla. – The family of a woman and her daughter who were reported missing in Doral this week traveled to South Florida from Colombia on Thursday to help search for them.

Doral police said Liliana Moreno, 43, and her daughter, Daniela Moreno, 9, were reported missing Tuesday by Liliana's sister, who called authorities from Colombia after she was unable to contact them for two days.

Yamileth Moreno-Ramirez told Local 10 News reporter Liane Morejon that she heard from her sister on Sunday night when Moreno sent photos of herself and Daniela at a restaurant and at Dave & Buster's in Dolphin Mall.

"I need my sister and my niece," Moreno-Ramirez said. "I need information that can help us find them." 

She said she spoke on the phone with her sister the next morning and everything seemed fine. That was the last time she heard from Moreno.

Moreno-Ramirez said she was planning a trip to Miami before her sister disappeared and also planned to travel to New York.

She and their brother, Eduardo Moreno-Ramirez, are now in South Florida for at least the next three days, but Eduardo said the siblings will stay "as long as it takes" to find their sister and niece.

They passed out fliers Thursday night at Pepito's restaurant in Doral in hopes that someone would come be able to tell authorities where their family members are.

"Daniela is a really nice friend," Mia Morillo, 9, said as she passed out fliers. 

Miami-Dade police are taking the lead in the investigation, but multiple law enforcement agencies have been helping in the search.

On Wednesday, police searched fields west of Hialeah Gardens by air and with the help of K-9s.

A tip also led them to a warehouse in Medley, where they towed away a dumpster as evidence.

Police also searched a home in southwest Miami-Dade and a waterway, where authorities sent dive teams using sonar technology that detects shadows underwater.

Police said no bodies have been found.

The family has also enlisted the help of the nonprofit organization, Missing Children Global Network. 

Fernando Alvarez, director of investigations with the organization, said they would only search in conjunction with Miami-Dade police if asked.  Alvarez said the group is helping print and post fliers, and post information on social media.

Also in attendance Thursday night was Carlos Aguilar, father of slain University of Florida student Christian Aguilar.

Aguilar said mutual friends of Moreno helped look for his son when he was missing, before he was found murdered. He said helping find Moreno and her daughter is personal.

"We're asking the community to please help the police, the Missing Children Global Network, and the media," Aguilar said.

A friend of Moreno's told Local 10 News that he was at the Miami-Dade police station Wednesday night being questioned by police, and while he was at the police station, Daniela's father, Gustavo Castaño, was also being questioned. 

Records show that Castaño did business with Moreno through the D & L Construction Group until last year, when he served as the company's vice president.

Moreno identified herself as a trained architect from the Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia, on her LinkedIn profile.

Police have not identified any persons of interest in Moreno and her daughter's disappearance, but said they are interviewing everybody who has a relationship with them.

Anyone with information about Moreno's and Daniela's whereabouts is asked to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.


About the Authors:

Amanda Batchelor is the Digital Executive Producer for Local10.com.

Liane Morejon is an Emmy-winning reporter who joined the Local 10 News family in January 2010. Born and raised in Coral Gables, Liane has a unique perspective on covering news in her own backyard.