Above: Dakota Hamilton in 1996 (left) and a new picture circa 2009 (right)

Dakota Carmen Hamilton

Last seen in Santa Barbara, California on December 8, 1996

Vital statistics: Hispanic female. Born on October 31, 1995. Light brown hair, brown eyes. Her nicknames are "Cody" and "Dee Dee." She may use the name "Dakota Hamilton Diego." Her hair may have darkened. She has a mole on her right shoulder and dimples on her cheeks. Was one at the time.

NCIC number: M-984242499

Circumstances: She is being concealed by her non-custodial mother, Raquel Diego Lopez Hamilton. A photo and vital statistics are posted below. Her father, Charles Hamilton, was still married to her mother when he found tickets and passports for Dakota and her mother to go to Spain. He filed for divorce, but Raquel was granted joint custody and fled to Reus, Spain. While her father has been given visitation in Spain, he claims that his ex-wife threatened him. He has not seen his daughter since 1996. Spain refuses to return her under the Hague treaty. A felony warrant was issued for her on September 5, 2001 and an FBI warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was issued for her on November 18, 2002.


Above: Raquel Hamilton in 1996

Vital statistics: Hispanic female. Born on May 7, 1975. Brown hair, brown eyes. She may use the last names "Lopez" and/or "Diego." She has a tattoo on her left ankle of flowers. Was twenty-one at the time.

If you have any information as to Dakota's whereabouts, please contact the Santa Barbara County District Attorney's Office at 805-346-7450. Any information received can be kept confidential.


Information used to compile this case file came from the following sources:
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
The Charley Project
The Doe Network
California Missing Persons Registry
Missing Children International
Child Quest International
Child Protection Education Of America (site now defunct)

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