Police searching for woman missing over a month

Abby Patterson was last seen Sept. 5 in North Carolina

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Police are searching for a 20-year-old woman who disappeared over a month ago in North Carolina. Her family believes she may be in danger. 

Abby Patterson had been splitting her time between Jacksonville and Lumberton, North Carolina, where she has family. Lumberton is a town in southern North Carolina just east of Charlotte. 

According to her Facebook profile, Patterson was planning to move to Jacksonville soon.

Her mother said she received a text from Patterson saying she would be gone for about an hour. That was the last time her family heard from her. 

Investigators said Patterson, who had spent time in Florida for drug treatment, disappeared from an area of town near where three other women were recently found dead -- a span of less than half a mile.

But police told a North Carolina news outlet that they don't believe her disappearance is connected to the three deaths.

In a statement, Patterson's family says in part, "Abby is a light to everyone that knows her and without her we are lost... she is not just a missing person... she is a missing daughter... a missing sister... a missing grandddaughter... and a missing piece of so many people's heart."

Patterson was last seen getting into a brown Buick the morning of Sept. 5. She was wearing brown shorts and a white shirt.

She is 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. She has brown hair and eyes. Patterson has a birth mark on the back of her left thigh and a bird tattoo on her shoulder. 

Click photo left for printable poster.

Authorities are offering a $5,000 reward for information that could lead to her whereabouts. If you have any information on her disappearance, call Lumberton, North Carolina, police at 910-671-3845.