(Photo courtesy of Virginia State Police)

Update: JinJing Ma was found safe on Friday, according to a media statement from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. Ma was found in the custody of her parents in the New York borough of Queens, the statement says. The FBI is now taking over the investigation.

ABC’s Sam Sweeney reports that the FBI is now calling this a ‘misunderstanding.’

Original: The Virginia State Police issued an Amber Alert Thursday for a 12-year-old Chinese girl they say was abducted from Reagan National Airport at around 8:15 a.m. that morning. JinJing Ma was seen on airport surveillance footage leaving the airport willingly with an unknown Asian woman, and climbing into a white Infiniti car with New York tags, David Huchler, the Washington Airports Authority Police Chief, said at a press conference late Thursday.

Ma is described as being 5’0″ and 90 pounds, according to Virginia State Police. She was in the United States with a tour group from China, visiting schools and sightseeing. Ma reportedly told her tourmates she was going to the restroom, and then disappeared, Huchler said. She was seen on surveillance footage meeting up with the unknown Asian woman, who is described as being 5’2″ to 5’5″ and 130 pounds, Huchler continued.

Ma was last seen wearing blue jeans, a white shirt, and a black jacket. According to the Amber Alert, the unknown woman helped Ma change her clothes, and then the two walked to the “Arrivals” area together. The camera lost sight of them shortly after.

Huchler said that the woman suspected of abducting Ma was previously seen in the airport with an unknown male, who was not present when the woman met up with the child. The man was not seen on surveillance footage again, but authorities believe a man was driving the Infiniti, and that it could have been the man previously seen on surveillance footage.

Surveillance footage of the unknown Asian woman who led Ma away from the airport. (Virginia State Police)

Authorities are currently working to enhance the surveillance video to get a better view of both potential suspects, as well as the New York tags on the Infiniti, Huchler said.

Ma was reportedly approached by two people while her tour group was sightseeing in New York, Huchler said in another press conference Friday morning. It’s not clear how much contact there was between the child and the two unknown individuals, and it’s also not clear if they’re the same individuals who led her away from the airport. But Huchler said that the incidents appear to be “connected.” He said they’re not sure how much familiarity there was between Ma and the people who approached her in New York, though there appeared to be some.

Huchler emphasized that the Department was unsure about the exact circumstances of the abduction and why Ma would have left willingly with the woman. Despite the lack of force involved in the abduction, Huchler said “that does not release any of our concerns.” Huchler said her age, and the fact that she was in possession of her passport, make this a critical situation.

Anyone with information about Ma or her abduction should call MWAA police at 703-417-2400.