Stepfather of Madalina Cojocari found guilty of failing to report her missing

NORTH CAROLINA (WTVD) -- A North Carolina stepfather was found guilty of failing to report the disappearance of his stepdaughter on Friday.

It took the Charlotte jury just 14 minutes to deliberate.

11-year-old Madalina Cojocari was last seen in November 2022 getting off a school bus. She was missing for 23 days before her mother Diana Cojocari reported her missing.

During the trial, Palmiter's defense attorney placed blame on Diana, who already pleaded guilty to the same charge.

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.

Diana was sentenced to 6 to 17 months in prison for the crime last week. But, since she's already been in jail for 520 days, Diana was released once the paperwork cleared.

Palmiter was sentenced to 30 months of supervised probation.

His attorney said they plan to repeal the sentence.

Madalina is still missing.

WATCH | 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.

CNN contributed to this report.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The video is from a previous report.