India, Dec. 28 -- A Texas father rescued his 15-year-old daughter within hours of her abduction on Christmas Day by using the location data from her cell phone, a move authorities said helped prevent further harm and led to a swift arrest. The incident unfolded in Porter, about 25 miles north of Houston, and has drawn attention to how quickly the situation escalated and how fast it was resolved.

According to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, the teenager had taken her dog for a walk around 4:50 pm local time and failed to return home. When she did not come back, her father alerted police and accessed the parental controls linked to her phone, officials said.

Using the phone's location, the father traced his daughter to a secluded,...