‘I feel like dying inside’: Family desperate for answers after police find missing mom’s car abandoned

Police have located a vehicle that belongs to a missing California mother, but the whereabouts of the woman are still unknown, CNN reports

The El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office said Friday that a black 2005 Infiniti G35 belonging to 33-year-old Heather Gumina had been found. Gumina has been missing since July 16, although it’s not clear where she was last seen, which has hampered search efforts by police, KTXL-TV reports.

Police searched Gumina’s home but that effort did not produce any information helpful in the locating her, authorities said.

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The vehicle was found inside El Dorado County, which is largely between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe, but authorities have not disclosed precisely where within the county the discovery was made. The car, which has pink accents, is now being examined for evidence.

Law enforcement previously thought Gumina may have been driving the vehicle.

Gumina has three children who range in age from 4 years old to 14. Joanna Russell, Gumina’s mother, said her daughter is a loving wife and mom.

Gumina had been hospitalized recently after she broke her collarbone, Russell said, and had cried about the amount of pain she was in.

But leave her children willingly? Never, Russel said.

“Every minute of the day I feel like dying inside,” Russell said during a vigil for Gumina. “I do, I feel like dying because I didn’t protect her. I didn’t protect her.”

Those close to the family are helping with search efforts and have also been praying for Gumina’s safe return, friend Kathy Schneider told KTXL.

“We are working really hard to find her,” Schneider said.

To report information about the case, call 530-621-6600.

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[Feature Photo: Heather Gumina/Facebook]