MIAMI -- A 4-year-old foster child, whose unsolved disappearance rocked Florida's child welfare agency two years ago, was caged, tied up and locked up, authorities said Wednesday in announcing abuse charges against the girl's two caregivers.

Geralyn Graham was charged with kidnapping and three counts of aggravated child abuse causing great bodily harm for actions in the months leading up to the 2001 disappearance of Rilya Wilson. Graham is already serving a prison sentence in an unrelated fraud.

Her roommate, Pamela Graham, was charged with child abuse causing no great harm and child neglect.

Given the investigation and the nature of the charges, officials are left with only hope that the girl is still alive. The state Department of Children & Families discovered in April 2002 that Rilya was missing and that its caseworkers had not made required visits to check on her for at least 15 months.

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The Story In Pictures: Looking For Rilya
Archives: Coverage Of The Rilya Wilson Case

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Geralyn Graham, 59, punished the girl by locking her in an animal cage, tying her to her bed and confining her in a laundry room at various times in the last five months of 2000, the arrest report said. She could get a life sentence if convicted.

Pamela Graham, 39, who is cooperating with investigators, is accused of failing to protect the girl from the abuse. She could get 10 years.

"We would hope that Rilya Wilson is alive," Miami-Dade police director Robert Parker said. "But in actuality, we fear that actually she's not alive."

State Sen. Frederica Wilson, D-Miami, who has championed the nationwide search for the girl, said she asked the police officer who notified her of the new charges "did they still think she was alive. They said, 'No."'

The time frame for the charges stop short of the date of her suspected disappearance. The Grahams say the 4-year-old girl was taken from their home by a DCF worker in January 2001. Parker emphatically denied that.

"This was really a lie, and I emphasize it was a fabrication and a concoction," Parker said. "This is concrete."

Contacted before the arrest announcement, Brian Tannebaum, Geralyn Graham's attorney, said he was told a few weeks ago that a new prosecutor had reopened the inquiry into Rilya's disappearance and wanted to interview his client. He said she did not want to talk to anyone in the renewed investigation.

"In my opinion, does she know what happened? Yes," Parker said. He said he hopes the charges will persuade one of the women to tell the truth about Rilya's disappearance.

Geralyn Graham was arrested in jail on the same day she was due in court for a report on her medical condition. She is brought into court in a wheelchair and is debilitated by chronic illness. Pamela Graham was arrested at the prosecutors' office.

Geralyn Graham is serving a three-year sentence for fraud in the purchase of a sport utility vehicle under a friend's name. Authorities said she has used 46 names, 15 Social Security numbers and 13 dates of birth. She went to prison in Tennessee for welfare fraud in the 1980s.

The kidnapping charge ties into court papers that were altered to indicate Geralyn Graham had custody of Rilya as part of an alleged welfare fraud scheme to pocket state benefits for the girl.

Pamela Graham had custody of the girl and was receiving state aid as her caregiver, while Geralyn Graham claimed to be her grandmother. The women initially identified themselves as half-sisters, but Pamela Graham told co-workers that Geralyn was her wife.

No criminal charges have been filed relating directly to Rilya's disappearance, which led to management changes and a blue-ribbon committee's investigation of DCF.

DCF spokesman Bill Spann called that statement by police "an important development," but said that "as a result of the Rilya Wilson case the department has made numerous, significant improvements to ensure this type of tragic crime cannot be repeated."

Rilya's last assigned social worker, DeBorah Muskelly, was placed on probation for official misconduct and agreed to repay the state $2,736 for filing false timesheets under an agreement reached in April. She was teaching during DCF work hours, including time she was supposed to be checking on the girl.