Mother of missing North Carolina girl released from jail after pleading guilty to related crime

NORTH CAROLINA (WTVD) -- The mother of 11-year-old Madalina Cojocari, the North Carolina girl who went missing in November 2022, has been released from jail.

Diana Cojocari pleaded guilty to the felony charge of failing to report a missing child. Diana and her husband, Christopher Palmiter, both were charged with that crime.

Diana did not agree to a plea deal. Instead, she has already spent the maximum amount of time in jail for the crime. She was sentenced Monday to 6-17 months in prison for the crime. Since she's already been in jail for 520 days, she was then allowed to go free once the paper work cleared.

SEE ALSO | Parents 'clearly' know more about missing North Carolina 11-year-old, police say

Missing 11-year-old Madalina Cojocari's parents "clearly" know more than they've told investigators, local police said on Tuesday.

The judge said it's very likely that Diana will be deported back to Moldova, since she is in the United States on a green card. Moldova does not have an extradition treaty with the United States, meaning if she does make it to Moldova, it will be very difficult to get her back to the states in the event more charges are levied against her in the case.

"We are just thankful this part of the investigation is behind us, and the search for Madalina continues, and as I've said many times before, we won't stop until we find her," Cornelius Police Chief David Baucom said.

Palmiter pleaded not guilty to his charged. He's scheduled to begin a jury trial later this week.

SEE ALSO | NC officials release video confirming when 11-year-old girl Madalina Cojocari was last seen

The parents of a missing North Carolina girl did not go to the police to say she had disappeared for weeks, officials said.