Police found the four-year-old in the bedroom of a Canarvon home just two minutes from their own headquarters and a two-mile drive from her family home.
Cleo Smith s alleged kidnapper had a strange interaction with a woman at Bunnings just days before detectives kicked in his door to find the missing four-year-old.
When Cleo Smith went missing from a WA campsite, keyboard warriors were quick to point the blame at her parents. But ingenious police work had already ruled out the innocent pair.
The four-year-old was reunited with her relieved family barely 24 hours ago after police rammed their way into a rundown house in Carnarvon just before 1am on Wednesday morning.
Terry Kelly, 36, had only been at Carnarvon police station, in Western Australia, for a few hours on Wednesday when he was allegedly set upon by a prisoner.