Missing North Carolina teen Rachel Natacha Owens found safe five years later in Ohio

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Rachel Natacha Owens was reported missing in North Carolina in May 2011
She was last seen getting off her school bus at South Brunswick High School in Boiling Spring Lakes
On Friday afternoon, she was found safe living in Ohio, authorities said
Investigators say she went to 'great lengths to intentionally conceal her whereabouts'
They added she even assumed a false identity and date of birth

Published: 01:46 EST, 12 December 2016 | Updated: 17:08 EST, 12 December 2016

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A missing North Carolina teenager who disappeared more than five years ago has been found safe in Ohio after assuming a false identity.

Rachel Natacha Owens, who went missing in May 2011 at the age of 15, was located on Friday afternoon in Columbus.

Owens, now 21, had 'left and remained away on her own will' and went to 'great lengths to intentionally conceal her whereabouts,' authorities said.

The young woman had even assumed a false identity and date of birth, Brunswick County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.

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Rachel Natacha Owens (left and right), who was reported missing in May 2011 in North Carolina at 15, was found safe on Friday afternoon in Columbus, Ohio, authorities said

Owens was reported missing on May 5, 2011 after she was last seen getting off her school bus at South Brunswick High School in North Carolina. Surveillance footage shown above

Owens was reported missing on May 5, 2011 after she was seen getting off her school bus at South Brunswick High School in Boiling Spring Lakes, North Carolina.

She was then spotted getting into a car in the parking lot and after that vanished, according to StarNews Online.

Before she was reported missing, Owens had previously run away but she was never gone for very long, according to the newspaper.

The FBI along with the Brunswick County Sheriff's Office worked tirelessly around several leads in both the U.S. and Mexico, FBI Special Agent Rich Novelli said.

Owens was then spotted getting into a car in the parking lot and after that vanished

A spokeswoman for the FBI Charlotte Field Office said the FBI had received information as recently as 2014 indicating Owens may have been in the Ohio area.

During the investigation, some leads included a story Owens wrote before she left in which she expressed a desire to travel to Mexico, StarNews Online reported.

Her friends also reportedly told investigators they had heard Owens was in Mexico.

The FBI had offered a $5,000 reward for information in Owens' disappearance.

After finding Owens safe on Friday afternoon, investigators said there is no foul play in her disappearance and that no charges will be pursued at this time.

A missing person flyer for Owens is shown above. The FBI had offered a $5,000 reward in for information in Owens' disappearance

Courtesy PortCityDaily.com/Christina Haley

Novelli said he met with Owens' family on Friday and informed them that she was found alive and safe, adding that now they can 'move on with rebuilding their relationship.'

The Brunswick County Sheriff's Office thanked all of the agencies that insisted in the investigation and for those who submitted tips that led to finding Owens.

'Sheriff [John] Ingram and the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office are extremely grateful to all of those who submitted tips and leads to detectives that ultimately led to finding Rachel,' the news release said.