Gainesville Police located three missing children Monday night who had been missing since the previous evening.

Janet Villanueva, 13, and her twin brothers Alexander and Alexis Villanueva, 7, were found at a Holland Avenue home at about 7:30 p.m. Monday.

“It was someone they did know,” said Police Chief Frank Hooper. “It looks like it was probably a friend’s residence.”

The boys were returned to their parents while Janet Villanueva was transported to the Northeast Georgia Medical Center for medical clearance where she is being detained on a Hall County Juvenile Court Detention Order.

Hooper said there were no apparent medical issues with any of the children.

“The two boys appeared to be fine,” Hooper said. “It’s just procedure. Just to check and make sure she was OK.”

Hooper said police believe Janet Villanueva convinced her younger siblings to leave home with her. It is unclear at this time what charges she could face.

“If you decide to run away yourself that’s one thing, but when you decide to take two 7-year-olds with you, that’s another,” Hooper said.

Hooper said the investigation is still ongoing. It is possible that the Holland Avenue residents could be charged in the incident as well, he said.

The children were last seen Sunday at 6 p.m. in the Blue Ridge Shopping Center. They left their home, about three miles away, to walk to the carnival in the parking lot, said Lt. Carol Martin.

The parents called the police at 2 a.m. after their own search was unsuccessful.

Gainesville Police issued “A Child is Missing” alert at 5 a.m. and investigators searched all day for the children at the homes of friends and family.

A Child is Missing is an alert system used by law enforcement to help track missing children. A call center sends an automated alert to every household within a certain radius of where the child was last seen.

“We wish the parents would have come forward a lot sooner,” Hooper said. “We encourage anyone, especially in the case of a missing child, to contact police immediately.”