A Tennessee mom missing for nearly a month has been found safe and her boyfriend arrested on a failure to appear warrant stemming from a theft incident.
Nikki Alcaraz, 33, and her 33-year-old boyfriend, Tyler Stratton, set off for Orange County, California, early this month to visit her uncle, as CrimeOnline previously reported. Within days, however, a passing trucker spotted the two in a physical fight and called police when he saw Stratton punch Alcaraz in the face.
Although Alcaraz initially indicated she wanted to press charges, she changed her mind after Stratton said he had been hit too. Body camera footage showed Alcaraz with a black eye and other bruising and Stratton with a bloody nose. Torrance County, New Mexico, deputies dropped the pair off in separate locations, and no charges were filed.
“Generally speaking, they should’ve been arrested. That’s my understanding. When I asked the officer about it, he indicated our district attorney frowned on such arrests,” said Torrance County Sheriff David Frazee. “That’s something I’ve got to look into, but it will be investigated. If we made a misstep then we will take action to correct it.”
Two days later, Alcaraz told a family member she had to find Stratton and disappeared.
Her sister ultimately filed a missing persons report in Torrance County, where she was last seen, but nothing was heard from her until she was seen at an ecoATM in Redding, California, over the weekend, apparently selling her cell phone. Redding Police said they learned that both Stratton and Alcaraz had been at the Redding Walmart on Saturday and that both left in Alcaraz’s Jeep.
Then, on Tuesday, a resident in Eureka, California, reported spotting the Jeep. Police investigated and found Stratton and Alcarez, who said she was fine and didn’t need help, WKRN reported. Both cooperated with officers, and Stratton was taken into custody on the outstanding warrant. He will be extradited back to Tennessee.
It’s not clear why Alcaraz and Stratton were in northern California — Eureka and Redding are both north of San Francisco — and not southern California where they initially set out to go. Nor is it clear why Alcaraz had not contacted her family, including her two children, who are safe with family members.
For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast.
[Featured image: Tyler Stratton and Nikki Alcaraz/Facebook]
