Tenn. woman found safe in California after disappearing during road trip with boyfriend
05/30/2023 4:03 pm PDT
UPDATE (MAY 31, 2023) -- WKRN reports Nikki Alcaraz was found safe in Eureka, California. Her boyfriend, Tyler Stratton, was taken into custody due to an outstanding warrant out of Tennessee.
CHEATHAM COUNTY, Tenn. (TCD) -- A 33-year-old woman was spotted selling her cellphone in California after going missing during a road trip with her boyfriend, who is wanted on an outstanding warrant.
The Cheatham County Sheriff's Office said Nikki Michelle Alcaraz was last seen May 6, and known to be in Mariarty, New Mexico, with Steve Tyler Stratton. She reportedly sent a text message to a family member two days later on May 8, and no one has heard from her since. They were driving a black Jeep Wrangler with camouflage seats and a "Mama Tired" bumper sticker.
The Sheriff's Office believes Alcaraz is in danger "due to a history of domestic violence."
According to WKRN-TV, Alcaraz, Stratton, and a dog left Tennessee to travel to Orange County, California to visit her uncle. Alcaraz's sister, Toni Alcaraz, told WKRN she talks to Nikki "almost every day," but had not spoken to her since Nikki told her she was in Arizona.
While on the road, the two got stopped in Torrance County, New Mexico, after a witness allegedly saw Stratton punch Alcaraz in the face. Alcaraz allegedly punched him back and he had blood on his face. Toni Alcaraz said her sister's eye turned black and "you could tell she was beat up pretty bad."
The Cheatham County Sheriff's Office shared a photo of Alcaraz with a black eye in their missing person alert.
Though she remains missing, the Cheatham County District Attorney's Office said Alcaraz might have been spotted in at a Walmart in Redding, California, selling her phone at an ecoATM.
WKRN reports Stratton is wanted on a failure to appear warrant regarding a theft charge.
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