McKEESPORT, Pa. -- A McKeesport teenager who disappeared in 1996 has been found.

Tanya Kach, now 24, was 14 when she disappeared on Feb. 10, 1996. That was the last time she was heard from, police said.

Ten years later, officials said on Wednesday that Kach was found in McKeesport -- the very city from which she vanished.

Kach was reunited with her father, Jerry, on Wednesday, and said she was looking forward to seeing her mother on Thursday for the first time in years.

She had been going by the name "Nikki Evans," Channel 4 Action News reporter Kelly Frey said.

According to Frey, the man who found Kach is Joe Sparico, the owner of JJ's Deli Mart in McKeesport.

Sparico said that for the past seven months, Kach had been going to his deli and befriended him.

On Tuesday, Sparico said Kach came into his deli and told him that she had been using an alias -- that her name is Tanya Kach.

Kach said she was held captive, typically made to stay in the bedroom of a house on Soles Street in McKeesport, Channel 4 Action News reporter Sheldon Ingram said.

According to Ingram, Kach said she was not allowed to leave the house until sometime in 2000, which was a period of about four years.

It's the home of 47-year-old Thomas Hose, a security guard at Cornell Middle School. He shares the house with his elderly parents.

Kach said after four years as a captive, she was allowed to venture out of the house.

According to Kach, Hose threatened her life if she left or told anyone.

Kach said, "Don’t you abandon me," Sparico said.

"She said, 'If you go on the missing children Web site, you'll see my name on there.' And I just couldn't believe it," Sparico said.

Tuesday night, Sparico checked missing persons reports and located Kach, and then called McKeesport police.

"I was so scared that nobody would believe me," Kach said.

"I feel so bad for the family. I feel so bad for Nikki. She lost her childhood," said a neighbor on Soles Street who said she visited with "Nikki" almost every day. "She would leave about 3:15 p.m. because Tom got home after work."

When asked if Kach gave any indication that something was wrong, the neighbor said, "She cried a lot. She cried at Christmas. She said she missed her family, but she didn't know where her family was.

About 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Hose showed up with his attorney at county police headquarters.

Allegheny County Police Superintendent Charles Moffatt said that Hose would face charges for sex crimes involving a minor.

Tune in to Channel 4 Action News for the latest and refresh this page for details as they become available.

---

Related Links:
More Allegheny County News