Missing Children From Stearns County Family Found In St. Cloud

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Authorities say that they have located the missing Stearns County family, and spoken with both parents.

The sheriff's office says they and their four children had not been seen in several days. On Thursday, the Stearns County Sheriff's Office said that the children were located in St. Cloud, and in previous days had been in South Dakota and North Dakota.

The father was barred from any contact with the mother due to a no-contact order stemming from domestic abuse, and there was concern for the safety of her and their children. Authorities say that while the criteria for an AMBER Alert is "well established," issuing one did "not fit this situation at this time."

Sheriff's deputies arrested the father in early August for violating the no-contact order after he was found with his family inside a storage unit in St. Augusta.