SAPULPA, Okla. — For the first time since her kidnapping, Monserrat Aguirre and Capt. Jim Madden of the Sapulpa Police Department returned to the spot where she was rescued.
"I can remember seeing some of the houses, and being too scared to approach any of them," Aguirre said.
WATCH: 'Her whole life is a miracle': Kidnapping victim, Sapulpa police reunite
In May 2014, Aguirre, 8 years old at the time, was kidnapped by Michael David Slatton from a Tulsa playground. She was dropped off in a wooded area in Sapulpa.
"I didn't think I was going to find her alive," Capt. Madden said.
Madden did find her alive, tied up in a sleeping bag, hours after the call went out. Now, 12 years later, the two are returning to the same spot.
"I just feel very emotional thinking about God's miracles," Aguirre said. "Just knowing how, like there was a chance of me not being found."
"Her whole life is a miracle," Madden added. "She's a person that stands out for all victims of violence and things of that nature."
Aguirre, now a 20-year-old, able to gain a sense of peace going back all these years later.
"It feels like this chapter has been opened for such a long time, and it's been filled with such mystery and hurt and confusion," Aguirre said. "And so, it kind of brings everything to a close."
Now, she's using what happened as a child to help shape her into the woman she is today.
"There are a lot of negative memories attached to this place, but I'd rather not use it as a weakness, but use it as a strength," Aguirre said.
In 2016, Slatton was sentenced to 120 years in prison for his crimes.
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