Missing New Hampshire Teen Abigail Hernandez Sent Mom Letter

Dec. 6, 2013— -- A missing New Hampshire teen sent her mother a letter that was postmarked weeks after she disappeared, authorities said today.

The letter from Abigail Hernandez, 15, was postmarked on Oct. 23 and received on Nov. 6, according to the FBI and New Hampshire Attorney General's Office.

"When we received this letter, I will tell you it was unprecedented. It gave us hope," FBI special agent Kieran Ramsey said.

Mom Pleads For Missing Daughter's Return

Investigators said they decided to come forward with the existence of the letter because they fear the teen may be in "grave" danger and could perhaps be used for sexual exploitation if she is still alive.

While it was unclear if Hernandez left willingly or was abducted, Ramsey said investigators' "worst fear" is "someone may now be coercing her."

The existence of the letter was kept private at first, Ramsey said, because they wanted to glean everything they could from it and follow every possible lead.

Ramsey declined to reveal where the letter was postmarked or any of the letter's contents. He would also not disclose why it took two weeks from the moment the letter was postmarked for it to reach Hernandez's mother.

New Hampshire Assistant Attorney General Jane Young said investigators were able to verify the letter was from the missing teen because "the tone was a tone Abi would have used."

Young said revealing the existence of the letter may result in a deluge of fakes, however, "our hope is we see another letter[from Abi]," she said.

Hernandez was last seen on the afternoon of Wednesday, Oct. 9 leaving Kennett High School in North Conway.

When her mother Zenya Hernandez came home from her nursing job that night, her daughter wasn't home.

The FBI's search for the teen -- who was last seen wearing black yoga pants and a gray sweatshirt -- has been conducted by air, over rough wooded terrain, and in the nearby Sacco River.

Hernandez's last cell phone call was tracked to a spot near Cranmore Mountain, a ski resort near the missing girl's Village Way home, on the day she disappeared.

Two months later, Young said authorities will continue to chase every lead and asked for the public's help.

"We're asking you. Look at your neighbor. Look at the grocery store. Look at your church," she said. "Is there somebody you haven't seen here before?"