A Philadelphia man was arrested and charged with kidnapping Kada Scott, a 23-year-old woman who remains missing after her disappearance more than a week ago.
Keon King, 21, surrendered to police on Tuesday, Oct. 14, officials announced during a press conference on Wednesday, Oct. 15. While King is accused of kidnapping Scott, the woman remains missing following her disappearance on Oct. 4.
Keon King
On Wednesday, after announcing King’s arrest, police searched through Ada H. Lewis Middle School, an abandoned school located on the 6100 block of Ardleigh Street in Philadelphia. Police told NBC10 they had received a tip about evidence found outside the school’s property.
“Shortly after arriving out here, we were able to locate some physical evidence which ties Miss Scott to this scene,” Philadelphia Police Sergeant Eric Gripp said.
Gripp did not reveal what specific evidence they found. Police later confirmed they did not find Scott at the school after searching the entire property.
The school is located near the Awbury Arboretum where police had searched for Scott back on Friday, Oct. 10. They found nothing at the time of that search.
During Wednesday’s press conference, police also released a photo of King’s vehicle which they say had been spotted in neighborhoods across the city, including Center City, Mount Airy, Grays Ferry and Southwest Philadelphia.
Wednesday afternoon, around 3:10 p.m., police received another tip reporting that King’s vehicle was in the back of an apartment complex in Philadelphia’s East Falls neighborhood.
Police then responded to the Gypsy Lane Condominiums on the 4000 block of Gypsy Lane where they found the vehicle in the parking lot.
Police said the vehicle is heavily tinted and at this point they don’t know what’s inside the car. They are in the process of towing the vehicle and obtaining a warrant to search it.
While the car and more evidence have been found, police say Scott remains missing and they continue to search for her.
Keon King’s prior charges
Court records show that King had a criminal record prior to his latest arrest. Police said he had been charged earlier this year with kidnapping another woman but the case was dismissed in May when the victim didn’t show up to court. During that incident, King allegedly kidnapped a woman he knew in front of her home, threw her in a car, assaulted her and then let her out of the vehicle. Investigators described the incident as “domestic” in nature.
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That case was refiled on Tuesday, Oct. 14, following King’s arrest in Scott’s disappearance, officials said.
Besides the previous kidnapping charge, King’s record consists mostly of traffic citations, which are summary offenses. He also has an open DUI case out of Delaware County from December 2024, according to court records. He is still in the pre-trial phase in that case.
King’s other charges include driving a way from a police officer during a traffic stop in March 2025, fleeing from police on foot in June 2025 and driving without a license on Oct. 2, 2025, according to court records. His trials for all three of those incidents are scheduled for November and December of this year.
The disappearance of Kada Scott
Photos of Kada Scott
Kada Scott has been missing since Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025, after she disappeared while working an overnight shift at her job at the Terrace at Chestnut Hill, a nursing home on East Abington Avenue.
Her family last saw her at about 9:45 p.m. that evening when she left her home along the 8300 block of Rodney Street to head to work.
However, police said she never finished her shift.
Police said that she drove to work and parked her car there but she didn’t leave in her vehicle.
The car was found by police in the parking lot of the nursing home after she was reported missing, officials said.
Officials said that interviews with Scott’s coworker revealed that she had complained that someone had been harassing her through her phone shortly before her disappearance.
Police explained that they haven’t seen any cellphone activity from Scott since she went missing. They also said King was the last person who was in contact with Scott before her disappearance. Police said King and Scott knew each other prior to the kidnapping though it’s unclear for how long.
Her family hasn’t given up hope of finding Scott and they spent last weekend canvassing the neighborhood where she was last seen and handing out flyers.
“We are just trying to figure out more. As much as we can,” said Sanaya Murray, Scott’s friend.
Philadelphia Police and the FBI are all involved in the investigation which police are still treating as a missing person case. They are asking anyone with information on Scott’s whereabouts or anyone who may have been victimized by King in the past to call Philadelphia Police at 215-686-TIPS (8477).
“Anyone that may have been involved with this individual or anyone that may know this individual, please at this point in time make that phone call, feel comfortable enough to call us and let us know if you have any information regarding this person regarding any interaction you’ve had with this individual,” Philadelphia Police 1st Deputy Commissioner John Stanford said. “If you have been a victim of any crime regarding this individual, we want you to understand that now is the time to make that phone call and let us know.”