CHULA VISTA, Calif. — Community members across San Diego County are stepping up to search for Maya Millete, a missing mother of three from Chula Vista.
Thursday marks seven weeks since Millete, 39, was last seen at her home in San Miguel Ranch.
Veteran private investigator Bill Garcia will arrive on Friday afternoon in Chula Vista to start interviewing witnesses and search for Millete, who went missing from her home on Paseo Los Gatos Jan. 7.
“We have scoured the maps and the potential areas where someone may have taken her from the home, and we're going to search those areas with a professional team of investigators,” said Garcia.
The private investigator has not been hired by the Millete family, but he brings decades of expertise in investigating missing persons cases.
“There is a high probability that May had been taken. And, we don't know at this point whether she was taken by someone close to her or by a stranger. So, we have to figure that part of it out,” said Garcia.
Garcia and his team will search areas in the East County using a drone. At this point, he is not asking for any help from the community.
“If something has happened to May and there's a body out there, then we want to minimize the impact so that law enforcement can do their job,” Garcia said.
If you want to get involved, there are three volunteer searches taking place on Sunday.
“The more hands on deck the better, whoever wants to come,” said Ashley Rawlins, a local attorney who is organizing two searches in the North County.
One search begins at 8 a.m. Sunday at the Elfin Forest Recreational Reserve.
The other starts at 1 p.m. at Lake Hodges near the parking lot on Lake Drive.
“We're just trying to cover as much ground as possible and really search for any clues or evidence or anything that might help us be able to bring her home and find some answers and seek justice,” said Rawlins.
A separate search will begin at 1 p.m. on Sunday at the Otay Valley Regional Park, which is closer to the home where Millete lived with her husband Larry and three children.
“If you cannot join us please just keep praying for the family. The more prayers the better and we pray that God will bring her home,” said Rawlins.
Millete’s family has set up a GoFundMe page to assist the search effort.