Sex offender questioned in case of missing girl
Search on for 13-year-old who disappeared in Florida
 |  Sarah Michelle Lunde, 13, was last seen on Saturday. |
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| | SARAH MICHELLE LUNDE | Age: 13, born August 30
Ht., Wt.: 5 feet 3; 176 lbs.
Description: White; brown hair below shoulders usually worn in ponytail; hazel eyes, last seen in white T-shirt, orange and blue basketball shorts; green cast on left wrist
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RUSKIN, Florida (CNN) -- Authorities and volunteers resumed a search for a missing 13-year-old girl at daybreak Thursday as a convicted sex offender who has been questioned in connection with the case goes to court.
Law enforcement officials said David Onstott, who had once dated but recently broke up with the mother of missing Sarah Michelle Lunde, will appear in court Thursday morning to be arraigned for failing to register as a sex offender.
Onstott was arrested Tuesday night in Apollo Beach, Florida, north of the girl's hometown of Ruskin, on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the sheriff's office said.
According to deputies, Onstott threatened a man with a screwdriver during a heated argument.
Authorities had been prepared to release Onstott on bail when they discovered he is named in a Michigan warrant charging him with driving while intoxicated, the sheriff said. Because of that, he remains in the Hillsborough County Jail.
Sheriff David Gee said Onstott, 36, has been questioned extensively in the Lunde case.
"I really don't want to characterize him at all at this point other than to say we are pursuing that lead," Gee told CNN's "American Morning" Thursday.
According to Gee, authorities have accounted for and are questioning 23 of 24 sex offenders living in the area south of Tampa, where Sarah lives.
The other offender is believed to have moved out of the region before the girl's disappearance.
Sarah's father lives in Zephyrhills, Florida, and is not in close contact with the family. There appears to be no connection between him and his missing daughter, Gee said.
Sarah's mother, at a police news conference, begged people to report any information, even rumors, to the sheriff's office.
"All we want to do is bring Sarah home safely," Kelly May said.
Assisting with the search Wednesday, Gee said, were more than 100 law enforcement officers, about 110 volunteers, bloodhounds, divers and mounted police.
They combed portions of about 15 square miles of the county, which the sheriff described as "tough territory," dissected by the Manatee River, tributaries and thick brush.
Mark Lunsford, whose 9-year-old daughter Jessica was abducted and killed last month in Homosassa, Florida, was helping with the search for Sarah on Thursday. A convicted sex offender faces capital murder charges in the killing of Jessica. (Full story)
Sheriff's Capt. Craig Lattimer said authorities will be double checking some areas. "We had some scent dogs out here. They were indicating there was some scents," he said Thursday.
Fliers have been distributed in English and Spanish.
"We're very concerned about this; this is very out of context for Sarah to be missing like this," Lattimer said Wednesday. "She has gone missing before but has always returned."
Sarah has spent time in the state's foster care system, law enforcement officials said. Both her mother and her father have criminal histories.
According to state records, Sarah's father has been arrested for bigamy, solicitation of prostitution and aggravated battery. Her mother has been arrested several times for passing bad checks, records show.
According to information on the sheriff's Web site, Sarah was reported missing by her mother Monday afternoon.
Her older brother told authorities that Sarah came home Saturday night unexpectedly after attending a church function, according to Rick Morera, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
The brother went out that night and when he came home early Sunday, his sister was gone, Morera said.
Leslie Fontana, who is Sarah's best friend and was with her Saturday night, said her friend was not upset and was having fun at the church retreat.
"We played volleyball, we sang, we had fun," the girl said. "She was in a really good mood... she was laughing."
Sarah has a green cast on her left wrist, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Web site. She is described as white, 5 feet 3 and about 176 pounds.
Last month, a registered sex offender living in Homosassa, Florida, was arrested in connection with the abduction and killing of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford, who lived across the street from him. (Full story)
Ruskin is about 10 miles south of Tampa on the Tampa Bay coast and 100 miles south of Homosassa.
Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, will visit volunteers and law enforcement officials as they search for Sarah on Thursday.
Lunsford said he was coming to show his support for the volunteers who were giving up their time to help look for Sarah.
CNN's Susan Candiotti contributed to this report.
