25-year-old vanished after leaving jail in October, GA cops say. She’s still missing
A 25-year-old woman who vanished after getting out of jail is still missing months later, Georgia authorities say.
Now there’s a $2,000 reward as police turn to the public to help bring her home.
Selena Garcia was reported missing Oct. 23 from a home she was staying at in Lilburn, according to the Gwinnett County Police Department. Authorities said she last spoke with family members that morning, not long after she bonded out of jail.
Booking records, however, show she was released around 10 p.m on Oct. 6.
Garcia is 5 feet, 4 inches tall with brown hair, brown eyes and weighs about 160 pounds, police said. She also has multiple tattoos, including a green marijuana plant on the top of her hand, “503” across the fingers of her right hand and “Maria” on the outside of her wrist.
The Lilburn woman hasn’t been seen or heard from in months, and relatives said they believe something happened to her.
“I think so many things,” her sister told WSB-TV. “And I do think she was kidnapped. Yes, I do think she was taken against her will.”
Her sister is praying for Selena’s safe return and said she felt police didn’t do enough when Selena was first reported missing, according to WXIA. The department has faced similar criticism from the community following the recent disappearances of three Hispanic youth, including 16-year-old Susana Morales.
A Doraville Police Department officer was arrested and charged with murder in Morales’ death after the teen’s body was found dumped in the woods more than six months after her disappearance, McClatchy News reported.
In a statement, Gwinnett County police said young people who are reported missing and haven’t returned home in 24 hours are listed as runways “for administrative purposes.”
“However, all missing and runaway juveniles are investigated and treated the same,” the department said. “No biases are established when the juvenile is missing or is a runaway, and the only goal is to confirm the safety and well-being of the missing individual.”
Investigators said they’ve “exhausted all leads” in their search for Garcia, adding that it’s tougher to investigate the disappearance of an adult without evidence of an abduction or crime, WXIA reported.
Anyone with information on Garcia’s whereabouts is asked to contact Gwinnett County police detectives at 770-513-5300 or submit an anonymous tip by calling Crime Stoppers of Greater Atlanta at 404-577-TIPS (8477).
Lilburn is about 25 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta.
This story was originally published March 14, 2023 at 10:44 AM with the headline "25-year-old vanished after leaving jail in October, GA cops say. She’s still missing."