HOMOSASSA, Fla. -- A registered sex offender being sought for questioning in the disappearance of a 9-year-old girl has been taken into custody.

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Ronda Hemminger Evan, with the Citrus County, Fla., sheriff's office, said that Georgia officials have placed John Evander Couey under arrest because he didn't notify Florida officials that he was leaving the state. That's a requirement for sex offenders. He was taken into custody at about 9:40 a.m. Thursday.

Investigators are on their way to Augusta, Ga., to question Couey.

The sheriff of Citrus County, Fla., Jeff Dawsy, said 46-year-old Couey's home is about two miles from Jessica's home, but he also sometimes stayed with relatives who live within eyeshot of her house. Couey is considered only a "person of interest" in the Jessica Lunsford case but has not been named a suspect.

From interviewing relatives, investigators found out that Couey had traveled to Savannah, Ga.

Savannah police say they interviewed a man Saturday after Citrus officials asked them to talk to him. Sgt. Mike Wilson said Couey was found in a Salvation Army shelter, but because there wasn't a warrant for his arrest at the time, investigators released him.

Dawsy said in a statement Tuesday that no one has been crossed off the list of possible suspects.

Couey's arrest could be the break for which investigators and Lunsford's family have been waiting.

The most difficult thing Angela Bryant has ever done is wait for an update on the status of her missing daughter.

"It's very, very difficult just waiting," she told Cincinnati TV station WLWT. "It's the hardest part."

Now that Couey has been arrested, she said her emotions are even more difficult to contain knowing that he is a convicted child molester.

"It kind of makes me sick to my stomach, but ... I just want Jessi found. I want to make sure, even if this is not the guy, just keep on looking," Bryant said.

Meanwhile, Jessica's family members in Florida are anxious for answers.

"He's just someone they want to question and I just want them to keep searching," said Mark Lunsford, Jessica's father.

For now, Bryant said she's holding onto hope and the support of those close to her.

Jessica was last seen Feb. 23 when her grandmother tucked her into bed. When her family went to awaken her for school the next morning, she was gone without a trace. Police said a door at the home was unlocked and one of the third-grader's dolls was missing. She lives with her father and grandparents and is a third-grader at Homosassa Elementary School.

Jessica is described as white, 4 feet 10 inches tall, about 70 pounds, with light brown shoulder-length hair and brown eyes.

Homosassa is about 76 miles west of Orlando.

Anyone with information should contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at (800) 843-5678. Jessica's case number is NCMC1008416.