The parents of a missing California woman who vanished during a cross-country trip say that she’s spontaneous and known for changing plans.
“She was spontaneous. She changed plans a lot,” Chelsea Grimm’s father, Stephen, told NewsNation. “This wasn’t the first time she ever changed a plan, for sure.”
As CrimeOnline reported, 32-year-old Grimm set out from her San Diego home with her pet bearded dragon, Roxy, in late September, planning to drive to Connecticut for a family wedding and to visit her parents. She called her family on September 27, saying she wasn’t going to make the wedding and planned to camp for a few days in Arizona instead.
On September 28, an Arizona officer spoke to Grimm at a cemetery in Williams, Arizona, following a call about a woman acting suspicious. Grimm reportedly told the officer that she became emotional while working on a photo project concerning missing soldiers, adding that she planned to sleep in her vehicle, a white Ford Escape, that night.
“I just was doing a photo shoot of the lost soldiers and got a little emotional, so I was crying before I got back on the road,” Grimm told the officer, according to police body cam footage obtained by azfamily.com.
On September 30, a wood cutter reported seeing Grimm while she camped overnight in her SUV in Ashfork, Arizona. He reportedly said the she appeared to be fine.
When her parents didn’t hear from her for several days, they called the Phoenix Police Department and reported her missing on October 4. On October 5, a hunter found her abandoned vehicle on a forest service road near Ashfork in the Kaibab National Forest.
Police said they didn’t find Grimm or the bearded dragon in the SUV, and noted that her wallet, sleeping bag and some clothes were missing. He car was locked, police said, with two flat tires and her camera locked inside the vehicle.
There has been no activity on her cellphone or debit card since her disappearance, police said.
“The magnitude of this adventure, … of driving across the country was a lot for Chelsea. We gave her a bunch of options,” Stephen added.
Chelsea’s mom, Janet, says that it’s a “hopeful sign” that the pet bearded dragon is also missing.
“I think that the chances of people recognizing Chelsea are connecting the dots. If they see somebody with a bearded dragon, they’re going to take an extra look at that person.”
Grimm is described as a white female who stands 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs around 135 pounds. She has brown hair and green eyes. Janet added that Grimm has a vine with leaves tattoo on her left arm.
Although the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office doesn’t expect foul play at this time, investigators are trying to determine if she left with someone in another vehicle or hiked away.
Anyone with information on Grimm’s whereabouts is urged to contact the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office at (928) 774-4523.
Check back for updates.
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[Feature Photo: Chelsea Grimm/Coconino County Sheriff’s Office]
